An afternoon slide saw stocks erase early gains to close in the red. The Dow fell -49.57, the Nasdaq Composite -11.89, and the S&P 500 -11.88.

Crude oil rose above $110 per barrel, another record high, as the dollar fell to a record low versus the euro.

Airline stocks witnessed heavy selling on Wednesday; Alaska Air (ALK | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) fell -18.4%, Delta Air Lines (DAL | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) dropped -16.4%, and Northwest Airlines (NWA | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) lost -16.2%. AMR Corp. and Continental Airlines declined -12.8% and -9.6% respectively.

Humana (HUM | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) fell nearly 14% after the company lowered guidance.

Southwest Airlines (LUV | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) dropped -7.3% after the company grounded 41 planes.

Caterpillar (CAT | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) gained 3.6% after the company issued guidance in-line with estimates.