Stocks fall after Japan lifts nuclear crisis level

The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 100 points Tuesday after Japan raised the alert level on its nuclear crisis and Alcoa Inc. reported disappointing sales. A drop in oil prices pulled down energy stocks.
Markets also fell in Asia and Europe after Japan said the crisis at its crippled nuclear plant was as severe as the 1986 Chernobyl accident. The plant in northern Japan was damaged in the March 11 earthquake and tsunami disaster.
"It means slower growing coming out of Japan in the short term, and that's going to weigh on global growth," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners Inc.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 120 points, or 1 percent, to 12,261. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 12, or 0.9 percent, to 1,312. The Nasdaq composite index fell 29, or 1 percent, to 2,742.
Alcoa dropped 6 percent to $16.65 after the aluminum maker's first-quarter revenues fell short of expectations. Alcoa, one of the

Markets also fell in Asia and Europe after Japan said the crisis at its crippled nuclear plant was as severe as the 1986 Chernobyl accident. The plant in northern Japan was damaged in the March 11 earthquake and tsunami disaster.
"It means slower growing coming out of Japan in the short term, and that's going to weigh on global growth," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners Inc.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 120 points, or 1 percent, to 12,261. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 12, or 0.9 percent, to 1,312. The Nasdaq composite index fell 29, or 1 percent, to 2,742.
Alcoa dropped 6 percent to $16.65 after the aluminum maker's first-quarter revenues fell short of expectations. Alcoa, one of the 30 companies that make up the Dow average, is the first large company to report quarterly earnings.
Other big companies reporting results this week include JPMorgan Chase & Co., Google Inc. and Bank of America Corp.
The energy industry lost the most of the 10 that make up the S&P 500 index. Oil prices slid 3.5 percent to $106.03 per barrel. Goldman Sachs, which had been bullish on oil prices, surprised the market with a report early Tuesday saying it now expects a "substantial pullback." Chevron Corp. lost 3 percent and Exxon Mobil Corp. 2 percent.
Slot machine makers dropped after WMS Industries Inc. warned that its latest earnings will fall short of expectations. WMS sank 15.6 percent to $30.56. International Game Technology dropped 5.2 percent to $15.06.