Wall Street stocks resumed their downward slide on Wednesday, falling sharply in opening trading amid rising fears the coronavirus outbreak will lead to a recession.

Photo: Xinhua

About 12 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 24,288.78, down about 730 points, or 2.9 percent.

The broad-based S&P 500 also sank 2.9 percent to 2,797.51, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 2.6 percent to 8,125.42.

While stocks rallied on Tuesday, equities have been on a broad downward trend for the last three weeks or so as the coronavirus has morphed from a China-centered problem to a global worry, threatening the 11-year US "bull" market for stocks.

Fresh news on the coronavirus front included the postponement of the giant Coachella music festival in California and a decision by the Bank of England to enact an emergency interest rate cut. 

German Chancellor Angela Merkel cited forecasts that some two-thirds of the country could contract the virus, while US lawmakers and President Donald Trump's administration were engaged in back-and-forth on possible stimulus measures for the US economy.

A note from Goldman Sachs again slashed its 2020 earnings forecasts, saying both the real economy and financial economy were showing "acute signs of stress" as travel slows to a trickle and the oil industry reels in the face of lower oil prices.