US stocks end sharply lower

New York - Wall Street stocks finished a volatile session sharply lower on Wednesday as worries about the strong dollar and falling oil prices outweighed some positive earnings reports.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 195.84 points (1.13%) to 17 191.37.

The broad-based S&P 500 slumped 27.39 (1.35%) to 2 002.16, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index fell 43.50 (0.93%) to 4,637.99.

"The underlying condition of the market is still weak," said Mace Blicksilver, director of Marblehead Asset Management.

Stocks fell decisively in the last hour of trade, as markets weighed the US Federal Reserve's policy statement, in which it described US economic growth as "solid" but pledged a "patient" approach to raising interest rates.

Analysts said the Fed statement kept alive the chance of a Fed rate hike as early as mid-2015, which Blicksilver called "very worrisome" because it would further lift the dollar.

Other sources of anxiety include a new multi-year low for oil prices and uncertainty due to the Greek election.

Apple bolted 5.7% higher after disclosing that first-quarter profit was a record $18bn on booming sales of big-screen iPhone models, especially in China.

Dow member Boeing jumped 5.4% after reporting fourth-quarter profit increased 18.9% to $1.5bn on strong commercial aircraft deliveries. Analysts said the company's cashflow was surprisingly high, suggesting generous shareholder payouts ahead.

Petroleum-linked stocks suffered bruising declines. Dow member Chevron lost 4.2%, while oil-services company Halliburton lost 4.9%.

Large banks also fell. Dow member JPMorgan Chase lost 2.6%, while Citigroup fell 2.5%.

Online game developer Electronic Arts surged 12.8% as it reported third-quarter profits of $142m, up from a $308m loss a year ago.

Yahoo ended 3.2% lower following news it would spin off its stake in Chinese Internet giant Alibaba. Yahoo initially surged on the announcement, but later fell on doubts about the tech company's direction.

Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury tumbled to 1.72% from 1.82% on Tuesday, while the 30-year fell to 2.30% from 2.40%.