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NEW YORK, New York – U.S. stocks continued plunging on Wednesday with the benchmark Dow Jones index closing below 20,000.

The U.S. dollar shot sky-high sending major currencies around the world crumbling.

“The market’s really reacting to fear and uncertainty and we don’t think it’s over until it finds a floor on stock prices. The floor will have to be found in containment of the viral spread and limiting the economic toll of the virus,” Nela Richardson, investment strategist at Edward Jones was quoted as saying by Reuters Thomson on Wednesday.

U.S. President Donald Trump has proposed to Congress that Americans each receive a one-time payment, which will cost the Federal government $500 billion. He is also proposing a $50 billion lifeline for U.S.-based airlines.

“This market went from a position of where we were fearless back at the beginning of February to some days like today where you feel hopeless about what’s going on in the market,” Wayne Wicker, chief investment officer of Vantagepoint Investment Advisers told Reuters Thomson Wednesday.

At the cllose of trading Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1,338.46 points, or 6.3%, at 19,898.92.

The Standard and Poor’s 500 shed 131.09 points, or 5.18%, to 2,398.10.

The Nasdaq Composite deved 344.94 points, or 4.7%, to 6,989.84.

The British pound tumbled Wednesday to end around 1.1572 in New York. The euro dropped to 1.0914. The Japanese yen weakened to 107.97.

The Swiss franc sank to 0.9679.

The Canadian dollar tumbled after the U.S.-Canada border was closed to all but essential travel.

The Australian dollar plunged to a multi-year low of 0.5773. The New Zealand dollar tumbled to 0.5732.

Equity markets in Europe fell in line with the U.S. In POaris, the CAC 40 lost 5.94% of its value. The German Dax declined 5.56%.

In London, the FTSE 100 dived 4.05%.

In Asia, the Australian All Ordinaries lost 334.00 points or 6.26% to 4,998.80.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225, after being much lower earlier, recovered to be down 284.98 points or 1.68% at 16,726.55.

China’s Shanghai Composite fell 50.88 points or 1.83% to 2,728.76.

The Hang Seng in Hong Kong was down 971.91 points or 4.18% at 23,291.82.