Wednesday's reversal came after the euro weakened again and approached its four-year low, a sign how nervous traders are about the debt problems in Europe.
U.S. stocks have been tracking the movement of the 16-nation currency for weeks. A sliding euro indicates waning confidence in Europe's ability to handle the debt problems in the euro-zone.
Microsoft had the biggest decline in the Dow, slumping 4.07 percent to end at 25.01 dollars per share after its CEO Steve Ballmer said problems in Europe will have a ripple impact.