US STOCKS-Wall St dives most in a week since 2008 as NY, California impose restrictions

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* New York orders non-essential workers to stay at home
* Investors focus on more fiscal stimulus
* Indexes off: Dow 4.6%, S&P 500 4.3%, Nasdaq 3.8%

(New throughout, updates prices, market activity and comments
to close)
By Caroline Valetkevitch
NEW YORK, March 20 (Reuters) - Wall Street wrapped up its
worst week since October 2008, with the Dow and S&P 500 sliding
more than 4% on Friday as tough restrictions by New York and
California to try to contain the spread of the coronavirus
fueled worries about damage to the economy.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo early on Friday ordered all
non-essential workers to stay home, following on the heels of
California's unprecedented statewide "stay at home" order issued
late Thursday. The moves by two of the most populous U.S. states affects
some 40 million people. Also, federal authorities this week
moved to close the borders with Canada and Mexico, with more
than 12,000 cases having been confirmed in the United States as
of Friday.
"The equity markets are still trying to get a handle on how
bad the economy is going to be, and I think news of entire
states being closed probably qualifies as incrementally
negative," said Willie Delwiche, investment strategist at Robert
W. Baird in Milwaukee.
It affects "a lot of economic activity and a lot of
businesses."
In early trade, the market briefly attempted to build on
Thursday's gains, as global policymakers turned on the taps to
prop up financial markets reeling from weeks of heavy selling
that ended Wall Street's record 11-year bull run. The benchmark
S&P 500 index is down more than 31.9% since its record closing
high on Feb. 19.
Investors are now counting on further stimulus over the next
few days, as the U.S. Senate mulls a $1 trillion package that
would include direct financial help for Americans.
"The bottom line here is the market is clearly actively
anticipating the fiscal stimulus plan. It's almost like we're
going to continue to be in these volatile swings until we get a
little more clarity on how large that plan is," said Ryan
Detrick, senior market strategist at LPL Financial in Charlotte,
North Carolina.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 913.21 points,
or 4.55%, to 19,173.98, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 104.47 points,
or 4.34%, to 2,304.92 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped
271.06 points, or 3.79%, to 6,879.52.
All three major indexes registered their biggest weekly
declines since October 2008, although the Cboe Volatility index
.VIX - Wall Street's fear gauge - ended the day down at 66.04,
in what some investors saw as a sign that selling may subside
A Reuters poll of economists suggested the global economy
was already in recession, while analysts at U.S. stock market
index operator S&P Global said volatility across geographies and
asset classes was at record highs. "Quadruple witching" added to choppy trading on Friday, with
investors unwinding positions in futures and options contracts
before their expiration.
AT&T Inc T.N tumbled 8.7% as the wireless carrier said the
outbreak might have a material impact on financial results and
canceled a $4 billion share repurchase agreement. The airlines sector .SPCOMAIR rose 2.4% after losing more
than half its value since late February.
Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a
1.27-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.55-to-1 ratio favored decliners.
The S&P 500 posted no new 52-week highs and 94 new lows; the
Nasdaq Composite recorded 5 new highs and 257 new lows.
Volume on U.S. exchanges was 18.56 billion shares, compared
to the 15.5 billion average for the full session over the last
20 trading days.