Dow closes Down Over 500 points

New York, NY, USA Wall Street dropped precipitously Monday, with the Dow Jones industrials suffering their worst point drop since the The stock market has suffered one of its worst days in years as investors reacted to a stunning reshaping of the landscape of Wall Street that took out two storied names: Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and Merrill Lynch & Co.

The Dow Jones industrials are down more than 504 points, their sixth-largest point drop ever and their worst showing since the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Investors were shaken by Lehman's bankruptcy filing and what was essentially a forced sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America for $50 billion in stock.

While those companies' situations had reached some resolution, the market remained anxious about other companies. Among them: American International Group Inc., which is seeking emergency funding to shore up its balance sheet.