Wall Street sings Brexit blues, set for brutal two-day drop

By Lewis Krauskopf

(Reuters) - Wall Street slid sharply again on Monday after Britain's shock vote to leave the European Union, putting major U.S. stock indexes on track for their worst two-day swoon in about 10 months.

All three main indexes were down at least 1.5 percent in the wake of Thursday's referendum that has roiled global markets and led investors to seek safe-haven assets.

The Nasdaq fell more than 2 percent, underperforming the other major indexes, amid fears that fallout from Britain's decision could hit business investment spending in the technology sector.

Along with tech, materials <.SPLRCM>, energy <.SPSY> and financials <.SPSY> were the worst-performing sectors.

"The momentum has continued downward because there continues to be a lot of uncertainty," said Eric Kuby, chief investment officer at North Star Investment Management in Chicago. "It's important to note that it's orderly. It doesn't feel panic-inspired."

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 273.18 points, or 1.57 percent, at 17,127.57, the S&P 500 lost 37.64 points, or 1.85 percent, at 1,999.77 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 115.19 points, or 2.45 percent, at 4,592.79.

Eight of the 10 major S&P sectors were lower. Utilities <.SPLRCU> and telecom services <.SPLRCL> were the only ones to buck the trend.

Since Britain's referendum, the S&P 500 has fallen 5.4 percent, which would amount to its worst two-day slide since late August 2015.

Friday's selloff wiped out $2.08 trillion from global equity markets - the biggest one-day loss ever, according to Standard & Poor's Dow Jones Indices.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, however, said he sees no signs of a financial crisis arising from Britain's decision, although the result does present additional "headwinds" for the U.S. economy.

Banks continued to be among the worst hit as traders discounted chances the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in the near term.

Bank of America , down 6.3 percent, and JPMorgan , off 3.3 percent, were among the biggest drags on the S&P, while the KBW Bank index <.BKX> fell 5 percent. Earlier, Europe's bank stocks index <.SX7P> tumbled 7.7 percent.

With sterling hitting a 31-year low, the dollar posted sharp gains, dealing a blow to U.S. companies that receive a large portion of sales from overseas.

HeartWare International shares soared 92 percent after Medtronic said it would buy the company for about $1.1 billion.

Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by 2,510 to 523, for a 4.80-to-1 ratio on the downside; on the Nasdaq, 2,430 issues fell and 429 advanced for a 5.66-to-1 ratio favouring decliners.

The S&P 500 posted 19 new 52-week highs and 28 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 12 new highs and 155 new lows.

(Additional reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Nick Zieminski)