Wall Street resumed its slide today as Wall Street absorbed a gloomy outlook for the banking sector as well as bleak news from the National Association of Homebuilders. The major stock market indexes each fell more than 1.5%, with the Dow Jones industrial average giving up more than 200 points.

Concerns about the banking sector dominated the session. Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s downgrade of large banks, and its estimate that Citigroup Inc. would have to write down $15 billion due to its exposure to risky debt over the next two quarters unnerved Wall Street.

Other sectors suffered big hits during the session, including airlines and automakers.

Housing stocks also suffered. The worry on Wall Street is that the housing market is getting so weak it will crimp consumer spending, which until now has helped keep the economy afloat. Ahead of the holiday shopping season, any signs that Americans are pulling back could prevent a December rally.

The NAHB’s November housing forecast remained unchanged after the October figure was revised to 19 from 18. Economists polled by Thomson/IFR had expected the index would come in at 18.

“I think that a lot of folks are digesting the news from last week and they’re worried about the economy and the ability to grow earnings at the larger companies in America,” a chief investment officer at Cabot Money Management Inc. in Salem, Mass., Rob Lutts, said.

According to preliminary calculations, the Dow industrials fell 218.35, or 1.66%, to 12,958.44.

Broader stock indicators also declined. The S&P 500 index fell 25.47, or 1.75%, to 1,433.27, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 43.86, or 1.66%, to 2,593.38.