Wall Street ends down

Wall Street closed lower overnight, Australian time, amid fears set off by weak data and poor results from the software giant, Oracle.

The Dow Jones industrial index, which was almost 150 points down at one stage, closed 109.74 points down at 12,422.86 points.

The S&P 500 shed 11.86 points to close at 1,341.13 and the NASDAQ composite index fell 16.69 points to 2,324.36.

These were the first substantial falls on Wall Street in four sessions.

They showed, beyond all doubt, that volatility persists on world markets.

New data, confirming that business spending in the US is still weak, set off the falls.

That was followed by news that a proposed buyout of the Clear Channel is now in doubt.

Weaker than expected results, from the Software Giant Oracle also depressed the market.