Dow tumbles 282 points amid concerns the economic recovery is losing steam

• US stocks tumbled as concerns mounted over the pace of the economic recovery in light of slowing retail sales and rising coronavirus cases.
• Facebook, Amazon, and Google all fell over 1%, dragging down the S&P 500 which snapped a five-day rally.
• One market expert said the sell-off is an "overdone reaction" to slumping retail sales and geopolitical tensions in Afghanistan.

US stocks tumbled Tuesday with the Dow shedding almost 300 points as concerns mounted over the pace of the economic recovery in light of slowing retail sales and rising coronavirus cases.

Tech stalwarts Google, Amazon, and Facebook all slid over 1%, weighing down the broader S&P 500 index that snapped a five-day winning streak. Healthcare stocks were the only sector to finish in the green as investors piled into defensive names.

"Tuesday's stock market decline is a trader's tantrum and nothing more," said George Ball, chairman of Sanders Morris Harris. "The move is a one-day overdone reaction to some disappointing retail sales data and continued geopolitical tensions in Afghanistan."

Here's where US indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. ET close on Tuesday:

• S&P 500: 4,448.31, down 0.7%
• Dow Jones industrial average: 35,345.06, down 0.79% (280.34 points)
• Nasdaq composite: 14,656.18, down 0.93%

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell spoke to a town hall of educators and student earlier today. The central bank head discussed that the Fed's role in the economic recovery and noted that the bank's "powerful tools" have limitations.

Retail sales fell 1.1% to $617.7 billion last month, the Census Bureau announced Tuesday morning. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected sales to fall 0.2% to roughly $620 billion.

West Texas Intermediate crude slipped 0.88% to $66.69 per barrel. Brent crude, oil's international benchmark, slid 0.58%, to $69.11 per barrel.

Gold slipped 0.28% to $1784 per ounce.