Sweeping layoffs and profit warnings from a range of blue chips on Wednesday sparked the steepest Wall Street sell-off for more than a month and wiped out nearly all of the market’s new-year advance.

All 10 of the S&P’s main sectors lost ground after glum corporate developments from the likes of Alcoa, Time Warner and Intel – coupled with a bleak labour market survey – heightened concerns that the year-long recession was deepening.