Might as Well Jump!

NEW YORK -- The sell-off on Wall Street intensified today, sending the Dow Jones industrial average down more than 700 points after grim retail sales data stoked fears that a punishing recession may be looming -- if not already underway.

The 8% plunge pushed the Dow back below the 9,000 level and erased most of the remaining gains from Monday's torrid 936-point rally. A government report that retail sales slumped 1.2% in September -- far worse than the 0.7% that economists had expected -- provided the spark for the sell-off.