U.S. stocks fall on Turkey concerns

Stocks fell further Monday on Wall Street as Turkey’s central bank was unable to stop a steep plunge in that nation’s currency. That helped lift the value of the dollar, a move that hurts big U.S. exporters.

Stocks were coming off their worst losses in a month as investors worried about financial and economic upheaval in Turkey and the possibility it will spread to other countries. Asian markets fell overnight, and European markets edged down.

Global markets skidded Friday as investors worried that financial distress in Turkey could affect the international banking system and the broader economy.

On Monday, Turkey’s central bank announced measures to help that country’s banks, but the Turkish lira and Turkey’s stock market continued to slide.

The lira has been tumbling as investors question whether the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan can cope with problems including the weakening currency and a diplomatic spat with Washington that has resulted in higher U.S. tariffs.

Investors also backed away from Argentina’s stock market. The Argentinian peso sank to an all-time low amid investor caution and a local corruption scandal involving former government officials.

The U.S. dollar is the strongest it has been in more than a year, which could eventually create problems for U.S. companies that make a lot of sales overseas.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 11.35 points to 2,821.93. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 125.44 points to 25,187.70.

Energy, industrial and basic materials companies took some of the worst losses. Technology companies held up better.

The Nasdaq composite slipped 19.40 points to 7,819.71. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks declined 11.49 points to 1,675.32.

U.S. stocks were on a fiveweek winning streak before last week, and strong corporate earnings reports were a big factor. But most of those reports are done.

Most retailers fell, but Amazon ticked up 0.5% to $1,896.20. It passed travel website Booking Holdings to become the highestpriced stock on the S&P 500.

U.S. crude oil fell 0.6% to $67.20 a barrel in New York. Brent crude fell 0.3% to $72.61 a barrel in London.

Wholesale gasoline fell 1.2% to $2.01 a gallon. Heating oil slipped 0.1% to $2.14 a gallon. Natural gas fell 0.5% to $2.93 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Gold dropped 1.6% to $1,198.90 an ounce, its lowest price since January 2017. Silver fell 2% to $14.98 an ounce. Copper fell 0.4% to $2.73 a pound.

The 10-year Treasury note yield stayed at 2.88%.