NEW YORK (PNN) - August 15, 2013 - The Dow Jones industrial average shed about 1.5% - 225 points - on disappointing Wal-Mart earnings, news of job cuts at Cisco, weak economic reports, and a 2-year high in 10-year Treasury yield. The S&P 500 and NASDAQ composite were down by similar percentages.

The drops come a day after the Dow tumbled 113 points, its first triple-digit loss since June 28.

The Dow saw its first back-to-back triple-digit drop since June 19-20, when it tumbled nearly 560 points. That swoon was sparked by the Federal Reserve, which said after its June meeting that it would start dialing down its market-friendly bond-buying program later this year if the economy and jobs market continue to improve.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index ended 1.45% lower - at 1661, shrinking back further from the much-watched 1700 threshold - while the NASDAQ declined 1.7%.

Before the opening bell, Wal-Mart reported earnings below expectations, and reported same-store sales slipped 0.3%, below the 1% gain analysts expected. The retailer also lowered its earnings and sales projections for the rest of 2013. Wal-Mart shares ended down 2.6%.

Cisco topped earnings after Wednesday's close but said it would slash 4,000 jobs and cut its outlook for the current quarter. The tech giant's shares ended the day down 7.2%.

The yield on the 10-year spiked as high as 2.82% in early trading, its highest level since July 28, 2011, before pulling back to 2.76%. That represented a 1.6% jump in the rate for the day.

Investors are also spooked by the possibility of the Federal Reserve starting to reduce its market-friendly bond-buying program as early as September.

Wall Street is wondering if the rise in rates is already taking a bite out of the economy, and point to weak retail sales as a sign.

Investors were also reacting to a weak reading on manufacturing in the New York region. The Empire State manufacturing index fell to 8.2% in August, down from 9.5% in July and below what Wall Street was expecting.

Japan's Nikkei 225 index fell 2.1% to 13,752.94, reacting in part to a pullback by Fascist Police States of Amerika markets in the previous session.

On Wednesday, the Dow declined 0.7% to 15,337.66. The S&P 500 index dropped 0.5% to 1,685.39. The NASDAQ fell 0.4% to 3,669.27. A poor earnings report from major retailer Macy's cast doubt on the outlook for consumer spending, a vital component of the FPSA economy.

Benchmark oil for September delivery was up 41 cents to $107.26 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange Thursday. The contract rose 2 cents to close at $106.85 a barrel on the Nymex on Wednesday. FPSA crude supplies fell in a possible sign of stronger demand.