Wall Street plunged for a second day Thursday as investor panic spread in the face of more weak economic data and the failure of lawmakers to produce a bailout for automakers.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank to a fresh five-and-a-half year low, losing 436.79 points (5.46 percent) to 7,560.49 at the closing bell.

The Nasdaq lost 70.32 points (5.07 percent) to 1,316.10 and the Standard & Poor's 500 plummeted 53.49 points (6.63 percent) to a preliminary close of 753.09, the lowest finish in a decade.