Stocks drop as oil prices decline and dollar strengthens

Traders gather at a post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Friday, March 13, 2015. U.S. stocks are opening slightly lower a day after the market notched its best performance in five weeks. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) Traders gather at a post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Friday, March 13, 2015. U.S. stocks are opening slightly lower a day after the market notched its best performance in five weeks. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

By Associated Press March 13, 2015 1 min read

NEW YORK (AP) – Stocks are closing lower, led by declines in utilities and materials stocks.

The price of oil took another sharp turn lower Friday and the dollar moved higher against the euro, threatening to pinch the profits of big U.S. exporters.

The Dow Jones industrial average slumped 145 points, or 0.8 percent, to 17,749.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 12 points, or 0.6 percent, to 2,053. The Nasdaq composite declined 21 points, or 0.4 percent, to 4,871.

Crude oil fell $2.21, nearly 5 percent, to $44.84 a barrel in New York. Oil has fallen 10 percent this week and is close to a six-year low.