This time stocks ended higher with the Dow Jones Industrial recovering from a sharp decline to rocket up to a five-percent gain on late October 16. The closely-watched index gained 401 points to 8,079.

Commodity prices closed sharply lower as investors assume demand will weaken along with the slowing world economy. Oil fell another $4 to under $70 a barrel, a 14-month low for crude. Gold was also lower with the price declining four percent to a one-month low of $804 an ounce.

"The thing that is very interesting to us is that as the dollar sort of shuffled around today, the price of gold came way down," said Thomas Winmill, gold analyst of the Midas Fund in New York.

"But longer term, though, the dollar is going to get weaker. So much money has been created. Fiscal and monetary policies are so weak, we think gold is going to trade up as the dollar goes down."

Industrial output in the US fell sharply in September, posting its biggest monthly decline in over 30 years.