Wall Street holds losses after data

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 135.96 points, or 1.34 percent, to 10,008.23. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 13.41 points, or 1.24 percent, to 1,065.06. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 19.69 points, or 0.90 percent, to 2,157.72.

Commerce Department seasonally adjusted data on U.S. business inventories and sales posted a 0.2 percent drop, with a Reuters poll showing expectations of a 0.2 percent rise.

The Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers said its preliminary index of sentiment for February was 73.7, down from 74.4 in late January but up from 56.3 a year ago.

Wall Street fell at the open after China surprised global markets by increasing banks' reserve requirements, raising worries about the impact of a monetary tightening on global growth and driving investors away from risky assets.

(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Padraic Cassidy)