After a strong start, U.S. stocks abruptly sold off Tuesday after machinery maker Caterpillar said it doesn’t expect to top its first-quarter profit for the rest of the year. The Dow Jones industrial average plunged as much as 619 points as investors feared that rising oil prices and other costs will slow down growth in company profits.

On Tuesday:

The S&P 500 index skidded 35.73 points, or 1.3 per cent, to 2,634.56.

The Dow Jones industrial average gave up 424.56 points, or 1.7 per cent, to 24,024.13.

The Nasdaq composite tumbled 121.25 points, or 1.7 per cent, to 7,007.35.

The Russell 2000 index slid 8.84 points, or 0.6 per cent, to 1,553.28.

For the week:

The S&P is down 35.58 points, or 1.3 per cent.

The Dow is down 438.81 points, or 1.8 per cent.

The Nasdaq is down 138.77 points, or 1.9 per cent.

The Russell 2000 is down 10.84 points, or 0.7 per cent.

For the year:

The S&P 500 is down 39.05 points, or 1.5 per cent.