Wall Street stock indices suffered major losses as oil futures hit a new record during Wednesday trading. ( dpa )
Oil contracts for delivery next month peaked at 143.91 dollars per barrel before closing at 143.74 dollars per barrel.
"As long as oil is going higher every day, it's difficult to say that we will hit a bottom," Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Harris Private Bank in Chicago, told the Bloomberg financial news agency.
The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 166.75 points, or 1.46 per cent, to 11,215.51. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 23.39 points, or 1.82 per cent, to 1,261.52. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index plummeted 53.51 points, or 2.32 per cent, to 2,251.46.
The US currency dropped against the euro to 62.949 from 63.32 euro cents on Tuesday. The dollar slipped against the Japanese currency to 105.83 yen, compared to 106.11 yen on Tuesday.
Gold gained 2 dollars to 946.50 dollars per fine ounce.