Severe Decline in Stock Markets and Oil Prices for the Second Consecutive Day

With the announcement of government statistics indicating a decrease in the economic growth rate of the United States, stock indices experienced turbulence, declining for the second consecutive day. Simultaneously, oil prices on Tuesday, January 6, fell by another four percent. According to Reuters, while on Monday, the Wall Street stock market in New York experienced its largest index drop since October of the previous year, on Tuesday, January 6, the indices of this market faced a severe decline as well. U.S. government statistics, which previously indicated strong economic growth in the third quarter of last year, now show a slowdown in economic growth in the fourth quarter of 2014. These statistics indicate that growth in the U.S. services sector was moderate in the fourth quarter, but new orders for manufactured goods decreased for the fourth consecutive month during this period. The report adds that the issues surrounding stock trading remain unresolved while the decline in global oil prices continues. Additionally, the upcoming elections in Greece, scheduled to take place in three weeks, have increased speculation about the country potentially exiting the Eurozone. Greece has faced a financial crisis for years and has taken out substantial loans from abroad. The upcoming elections in Greece have caused the European Central Bank to hesitate in making necessary decisions to revive the economy of this union. Charts of stock indices on the New York Stock Exchange show that the Dow Jones index fell by 1.23 percent, losing 215 points on Tuesday. The S&P 500 index fell by 1.19 percent, and the Nasdaq index also experienced a 1.55 percent decline in value. Oil prices fell for the second consecutive day, with West Texas Intermediate crude oil, the U.S. benchmark, dropping four percent to below $48, a level not seen in the past five and a half years. North Sea Brent oil also decreased by three and a half percent to $51.25.