Another crazy day with nothing but good news, yet the Dow took a big 200 point dive.  The good news included both the S&P and Nasdaq registering their 9th consecutive quarterly advance, the S&P on its longest winning streak since 1998, the Nasdaq on its longest in history.  The Dow even came in pretty respectfully despite today's downturn, registering only a slight 47 point drop for the quarter.  Actually if the meter had been read a week ago, the Dow too would have been nearly 200 points ahead for the quarter, not to mention that it's been consistently ahead for the past 7 quarters (and that's just as far back as I checked.)  But today investors were looking with a nervous eye more to the future than the past, nervous about the March jobs report due Friday, and continuing nerves over the strong dollar and weak oil.  The negotiations with Iran which now look promising to result in a nuclear deal, but the downside of that is more oil imports from that energy rich country, none of which puts our own oil markets in a better place.  Today's expert from Boston commented that today's plunge was a reflection of everything bad that happened in Q1.  I think an argument could just as credibly be made that Q1 is going to be just fine and that today's numbers are just more of the same profit-taking that has been going on for quite some time now.  Volume was about average at 6.3 billion shares.

Markets | Tue Mar 31, 2015 6:47pm EDT

Wall St. drops but S&P, Nasdaq register quarterly gains

NEW YORK | BY CAROLINE VALETKEVITCH

DJ:      17,776.12  -200.19      NAS:      4,900.89  -46.56      S&P:   2,067.89  -18.35

(Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell on Tuesday as energy and healthcare shares retreated, but the S&P 500 and Nasdaq registered their ninth straight quarterly advance.

The S&P's 500 quarterly winning streak was its longest since 1998, while the Nasdaq's was its longest ever. The Dow registered a slight loss for the quarter.

During the session, all 10 S&P 500 sectors declined, with healthcare leading the way down. It dropped 1.5 percent, reversing strong gains from the previous day tied to deal activity.

Energy shares also retreated, falling with crude oil. The S&P Energy index declined 0.9 percent, while shares of Exxon Mobil Corp fell 0.7 percent to $85.

Oil was pressured as Iran and six world powers continued talks on a nuclear deal that could see the energy-rich country increase oil exports.

Investors also were anxious ahead of March payrolls data on Friday, when the stock market is closed for the Good Friday holiday. If the report is strong, investors could view the U.S. Federal Reserve as more likely to raise rates earlier than currently expected.

The dollar added to its sharp gains for the quarter, stoking worries about earnings for U.S. multinationals. S&P 500 earnings are expected to have declined by 2.8 percent in the first quarter from a year ago, Thomson Reuters data showed.

"Today's price action is a reflection of all the bad in the quarter - the stronger dollar, weaker oil - and in some respects just a snapback from yesterday's outsized gains," said John Canally, chief economic strategist for LPL Financial in Boston.

"Tomorrow's a new quarter and there's a new batch of people ready to take some risks, so I wouldn't be surprised if we see an up day."

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 200.19 points, or 1.11 percent, to 17,776.12, the S&P 500 lost 18.35 points, or 0.88 percent, to 2,067.89 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 46.56 points, or 0.94 percent, to 4,900.88.

The day's decline in stocks followed gains of more than 1 percent on each of the major indexes on Monday. The S&P 500 remains down 2.3 percent from its March 2 record high close.

All three indexes also posted losses for the month, with the Dow down 2 percent, S&P 500down 1.7 percent and the Nasdaq down 1.3 percent.

For the first quarter, the Dow declined 0.3 percent, the S&P 500 gained 0.4 percent and the Nasdaq gained 3.5 percent.

On the deal front, Charter Communications Inc agreed to acquire Bright House Networks in a roughly $10 billion deal. Charter rose 5.3 percent to $193.11.

NYSE decliners outnumbered advancers 1,794 to 1,247,; on the Nasdaq, 1,649 issues fell and 1,090 advanced.

The S&P 500 posted 22 new 52-week highs and 2 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 72 new highs and 42 new lows.

About 6.3 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, below the 6.7 billion daily March average, according to BATS Global Markets.