S&P 500 Erases 2011 Gain, Treasuries, Gold Rise on Economy Woes

Stocks tumbled as the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index had its biggest one-day loss in a year and erased its 2011 gain, while Treasury yields fell to the lowest levels since November, after an unexpected drop in consumer spending added to concern the economy will slide into a recession. Gold and the Swiss franc rallied.

The S&P 500 fell 2.6 percent to 1,254.05 at 4 p.m. in New York, dropping for a seventh straight day in its longest slump since 2008. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index declined 1.9 percent to an 11-month low. Yields on 30-year bonds dropped 17 basis points to 3.91 percent in the biggest decrease since May 2010. The Swiss franc advanced against all 16 major peers as 10-year Italian and Spanish bond yields climbed to euro-era records and gold set an all-time high of $1,661.90 an ounce.