US stocks extended slide on Tuesday after a release showed US G.D.P shrank 0.5% in third quarter. A worse than expected housing data and concerns over the fate of automakers added to the woes.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 100.28 points or 1.18% to finish at 8,419.49. The S&P 500 declined 8.47 points or 0.97% to 863.16. The Nasdaq Composite fell 10.81 points or 0.71% to 1,521.54.

A release by US Commerce Department showed real gross domestic product shrank at 0.5% at annual pace in the third quarter, matching the previous as well as consensus estimates.

Another release by Commerce Department on Tuesday showed sales of new homes fell an estimated 2.9% in November to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 407,000, from October's downwardly revised reading of 419,000. The figure is down 35.3% from November 2007 estimate of 629,000. This is the lowest reading for new home sales data since January 1991, when it registered an annual pace of 401,000. Economists on average had expected new home sales to drop to 415,000.

Separately, National Association of Realtors said on Tuesday existing home sales declined by 8.6% to seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.49 million units from October's downwardly revised reading of 4.91 million. Economists had projected Existing Home sales to fall to 4.93 million.

A report released on Tuesday showed the Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers' December's final consumer sentiment index rose to 60.1 from November's final reading of 55.3.

Shares of automakers extended slide after ratings agencies Standard and Poor’s and Moody’s downgraded the unsecured debt of the automakers on Monday. General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM) tumbled 52 cents or 14.77% to $3. Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) plummeted 40 cents or 15.44% to close at $2.19.

Among financials, Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) retreated 78 cents or 5.76% to $12.75. Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) dropped 22 cents or 3.26% to $6.52. Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) lost $1.80 or 2.34% to end at $75.20.

American Express Company (NYSE: AXP) plunged 46 cents or 2.50% to $17.96. The credit card lender said on Tuesday it received preliminary approval to obtain $3.39 billion in funds as part of the Treasury's $700 billion bank rescue program.

CIT Group (NYSE: CIT) rose 8 cents or 1.91% to $4.26. The U.S. Federal Reserve Board on Monday approved commercial finance firm application to convert into a bank holding company, enabling it to access up to $2.5 billion in capital from Treasury Department's $700 billion rescue program.

Shares of retailers retreated on gloomy forecasts for holiday sales. Macy's Inc. (NYSE: M) slumped 64 cents or 6.84% to $8.71. J. C.