Thursday's midday trade: Wall Street tumbles

US stocks slid on Thursday as a sharp drop in oil triggered a sell-off in an already fragile market that was staggered by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's downbeat comments a day earlier. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 171.34 points, or 1.41 percent, to 11,938.33. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index lost 17.04 points, or 1.32 percent, to 1,270.10.
The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 16.18 points, or 0.60 percent, to 2,653.01. Despite the decline, though, the Nasdaq pared its losses just enough to edge back into positive territory for the year. The S&P 500 has been able to bounce off its 200-day moving average, a key level of buying support, at 1262.57 - falling as low as 1,262.87 for the session.