US stocks on Monday notched their biggest one-day drop since early November last year in the wake of diving commodity prices, as lackluster economic data across the world took their toll on Wall Street.

The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average Index tumbled 265.86 points, or 1.79 percent, to 14,599.20 points. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock Index plummeted 36.49 points, or 2.30 percent, to 1, 552.36 points. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 78.46 points, or 2. 38 percent, to 3,216.49 points.

The commodity prices were hit by a weaker-than-expected economic growth in China. According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the country's growth of gross domestic product in the first quarter of the year slowed to 7.7 percent year on year from 7.9 percent in the previous quarter. The figure missed economists' forecast of 8 percent.

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange on Monday suffered their biggest one-day loss since the 1980s. The most active gold contract for June delivery tumbled 140. 3 dollars, or 9.27 percent, to settle at 1,361.1 dollars per ounce.

Meanwhile, US benchmark crude oil dropped to a four-month low. Light sweet crude for May delivery dropped 2.58 dollars, or 2.82 percent, to settle at 88.71 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent for May delivery expired on Monday.

The more actively traded June contract was down 2.6 dollars, or 2. 5 percent, to close at 100.44 dollars a barrel.

Deadly explosions hit a marathon in Boston, Massachusetts, Monday afternoon, which caused investors' nervousness to spike. The CBOE Volatility Index, considered the fear gauge of Wall Street, rose more than 40 percent to 17.27 on Monday.

Moreover, investors were looking for excuses to sell off stocks after Wall Street hit record highs repeatedly this year. The plunge in commodity prices sparked a panic selling in the stock market.

The market was also dampened by worse-than-expected economic data in the United States. New York State posted a disappointing manufacturing index. The general business conditions index fell to 3.1 in April from 9.2 in March, missing the market expectations, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported Monday.

Meanwhile, US builder confidence dipped for a third straight month in April, dropping to 42 from 44 in March, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index released Monday.

The stock market snapped a four-day winning streak amid disappointing economic data Friday after hitting all-time highs the day before.

On the corporate front, Citigroup's shares rose 0.20 percent to 44.87 US dollars after the banking giant posted its first- quarter earnings, which beat analysts' forecast, before the opening bell.

Sprint Nextel soared 13.50 percent to 7.06 dollars after Dish Network, a US satellite television provider, offered to buy the telecommunications company for 25.5 billion dollars.

On the currency market, the US dollar advanced against most of major currencies Monday. The yen rose for a third day versus the dollar after weakening to a four-year low last week as the Bank of Japan launched aggressive monetary easing measures.

In late New York trading, the euro declined to 1.3040 dollars from 1.3079 dollars of the previous session and the British pound dropped to 1.5276 dollars from 1.5343 dollars. The Australian dollar fell to 1.0323 dollars from 1.0502 dollars. The dollar bought 97.28 Japanese yen, lower than 98.89 in the previous session.