Volatility is still rocking U.S. stocks.
The Dow has been swinging between gains and losses on Tuesday. It was down about 140 points in the morning, but is now flat to slightly higher. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq each lost about 1% at the open but have since rebounded.
Stocks continue to swing on turbulent oil prices, which plunged to $28 a barrel on Tuesday after starting the day around $30.
The volatile market action comes during what’s been a terrible start to 2016 for U.S. stocks. Worries about cheap oil prices and global growth have sent the S&P 500 8.6% lower so far this year.
Global stocks remained under pressure overnight. Stocks in Japan plummeted 5%, while European markets closed down about 1%. That negative sentiment carried over into American stocks.
The Nasdaq is now down about 18% from its all-time high set last July. If the index sinks below 4,185.55, it will be in what’s known as a bear market, signaling a 20% decline from previous highs.
In the last two trading days — Friday and Monday — the Dow has shed 390 points. The selloff partially reflects investors’ fears of falling oil prices.
Low oil prices are great for spenders at the gas pump, but they’re spreading fear about energy companies potentially going bankrupt. There’s also concern about the oil trouble spilling over into the financial sector, which has loaned lots of money to energy companies.
“There’s concern that it’s starting to spread to other parts of the economy,” Doug Cote, chief market strategist at Voya Financial. “I am concerned about European banks.”
–CNNMoney’s Matt Egan contributed to this article.