Coronavirus: Wall Street opens in red, Dow falls 1.6%; S&P 500 down 1.7%

Wall Street's main indexes slipped into correction territory minutes after the open on Thursday as the rapid spread of the coronavirus outside China deepened worries about growth and corporate earnings.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 431.59 points, or 1.60%, at the open to 26,526.00. The S&P 500 opened lower by 53.85 points, or 1.73%, at 3,062.54. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 236.74 points, or 2.64%, to 8,744.03 at the opening bell.

The three indexes are now more than 10% below their record intraday highs hit earlier this month.