US stocks fell modestly on Thursday to close out the worst month since September as investor sentiment sank on Europe’s deepening credit problems.
The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 26.41 points, or 0.21 percent, to 12,393.45. The S&P 500 Index fell 2.99 points, or 0.23 percent, to 1,310.33. The Nasdaq Composite lost 10.02 points, or 0.35 percent, to 2,827.34.
European shares fell close to a five-month closing low to record their worst monthly loss since last August, as persistent fears over the euro zone and weak US data drove money out of equities and into cash and bonds.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index ended down 0.5 percent at 971.28 points, near the close of 970.24 points hit earlier this month, which was the lowest since mid-December.
In Asia, Nikkei share average shed 1.1 percent, closing out its worst monthly fall in two years as investors cut exposure to risky assets on deepening concerns over Spain and its banking sector, with exporters taking a beating.
The Nikkei fell 90.46 points to 8,542.73, cutting earlier losses amid talk from traders that the Bank of Japan was buying exchange-traded funds in the afternoon to support the market. The broader Topix shed 0.6 percent to 719.49.
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