MARKET HAS SECOND-WORST DAY OF 2017

About 95 percent of the companies in the S&P 500 finished with losses.

U.S. stocks plunge Thursday as losses for Cisco Systems hurt technology companies, while Walmart declines after its latest quarterly report.

U.S. stocks plunged Thursday as losses for Cisco Systems hurt technology companies while Walmart declined after its latest quarterly report. Banks also dropped as bond yields and interest rates sank for a second day.

It was the second-worst day for stocks this year, which has seen few large declines. Along with technology companies and retailers, transportation companies skidded and all of the industrial, financial and basic materials companies in the S&P 500 fell. Those sectors tend to struggle when investors are concerned about economic growth, although there weren’t any specific signs of economic trouble Thursday.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index dropped 38.10 points, or 1.5 percent, to 2,430.01, its lowest close since July 11. The Dow Jones industrial average tumbled 274.14 points, or 1.2 percent, to 21,750.73. The Nasdaq composite sank 123.19 points, or 1.9 percent, to 6,221.91.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks fell 24.59 points, or 1.8 percent, to 1,358.94.

High-dividend stocks like utilities and real estate companies fared slightly better than the rest of the market, although they still finished lower. About 95 percent of the companies in the S&P 500 finished the day with losses.

Bill Northey, chief investment officer at U.S. Bank Wealth Management, said that minutes released Wednesday from the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting last month marked “a little bit of a change in tone,” and suggested that the central bank is becoming more cautious about raising interest rates.

That helped push long-term interest rates in the bond market lower since then. Lower bond yields tend to hurt banks, because it prevents them from charging higher rates on loans, and benefits high-dividend stocks.

Investors were also assessing the state of President Donald Trump’s business-friendly agenda as he continues to face criticism over his comments after the violence in Charlottesville, Va., over the weekend. After he was elected, investors hoped his proposals for tax cuts and infrastructure spending would boost corporate profits.

“Most of the agenda ... has been a little bit distracted by non-economic factors,” said Northey.

Benchmark U.S. crude rose 31 cents to $47.09 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, added 76 cents, or 1.5 percent, to $51.03 a barrel in London.