We’re facing triple digit losses in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The index fell over 200 points or 1.14% in the first half of today’s session. Weakness is being attributed, in part, to International Business Machines (IBM), which trended down nearly 6% after seeing a series of losses in different segments. IBM’s strength came from its cloud division which sported year-to-date growth of 50%. The S&P 500 chart mirrors the Dow Jones Industrial Average as it continues to trade at session lows. The NASDAQ, on the other hand,  made a second attempt to break even, but reversed lower.

While economic data was light today, we did get some big news from the energy sector. Chesapeake Energy (CHK) announced that it would be halting its dividend payments come Q3-2015. The action is in response to low oil prices putting extreme pressure on the company’s capital budget. Crude oil prices are down over 50% from this time last year. CHK’s stock was hammered following the announcement. However, by cutting dividends for the first time in 14-years, the company should be able to save approximately $240 million annually. If oil is unable to hold at $50 per barrel, we may be seeing more oil and gas stocks follow CHK’s lead by reducing or completely stopping the dividend payments.