Wednesday's midday trade: stocks sink as banks slash jobs outlook

US stocks skidded on Wednesday as more weak economic data cemented fears the US recovery was running out of steam and prompted Wall Street firms to slash forecasts ahead of the closely watched payrolls report on Friday.
Goldman Sachs and several other big financial institutions cut estimates for non-farm payrolls growth in May after ADP Employer Services reported much lower-than-expected growth in private payrolls last month.
The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 180.20 points, or 1.43 percent, to 12,389.59. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 18.68 points, or 1.39 percent, to 1,326.52. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 35.20 points, or 1.24 percent, to 2,800.10.
The fall of about 1 percent for the major indexes came after four days of gains as stocks crept back toward recent highs at the start of May.