Nasdaq on track to post the most 1%-or-more down days in 2018, most since 2015

From William L. Watts: Barring a late-session rebound, the Nasdaq Composite COMP, -2.05% is on track Friday to fall 1% or more for the 38th time in 2018, according to Dow Jones Market Data, which would exceed the tally of 37 seen in 2015. It would be the most in a calendar year since 2011, the data showed. The Nasdaq is also set to see its 74th trading day without a record close, which would be the longest drought since a 264-day stretch that ended in August 2016. The Nasdaq was down 1.7% on Friday amid a broad stock-market slump tied to worries about global economic growth following disappointing data from China. The Nasdaq is clinging to a 2018 gain of 0.7%. The S&P 500 SPX, -1.88% was off 1.6% in afternoon trade, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -2.02% remained around 450 points lower, a decline of 1.8%. The S&P 500 and Dow are both in negative territory for the year to date.