NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell in a volatile session on Wednesday, with losses accelerating after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said a reduction in the rate of stimulus could occur this year if the economy continued to improve.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 138.24 points or 0.9 percent, to 15,179.99, the S&P 500 lost 14.34 points or 0.87 percent, to 1,637.47 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 26.11 points or 0.75 percent, to 3,456.07.
The Fed's bond purchases program has been a pillar of the rally that took the Dow and S&P 500 to historic highs last month. (Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Nick Zieminski)