Dow Poised For Triple-digit Loss On China Halt, Oil Slide

U.S. stock futures slumped on Thursday, indicating a downbeat open on Wall Street as another trading halt in China and sliding oil prices fueled heavy selling. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 332 points, or 2%, to 16,506, while those for the S&P 500 index dropped 42.40 points, or 2%, to 1,945.50. "China was once again at the center of the storm after the People's Bank of China sharply devalued the yuan, fixing it at its lowest midpoint since 2011," said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda in a note. "The move triggered another meltdown by investors, exacerbated once again no doubt by the new circuit breaker rules [in China]," he added. Oil was also a major concern to investors, with crude oil sliding more than 4% to trade around the lowest level since 2003.