NEW YORK—The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank more than 1,100 points and the S&P 500 had its biggest drop in nearly two years Wednesday, as big earnings misses by Target and other major retailers stoked investors’ fears that surging inflation could cut deeply into corporate profits.
The broad sell-off erased gains from a solid rally a day earlier, the latest volatile day-to-day swing for stocks in recent weeks amid a deepening market slump.
The S&P 500 tumbled 4 percent, its sharpest decline since June 2020. The benchmark index is now down more than 18 percent from the record high it reached at the beginning of the year. That’s shy of the 20 percent decline that’s considered a bear market….