NEW YORK—Another dose of anguish about the global economic recovery sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average below 12000, pointing to a sixth straight weekly decline that would be blue chips' longest slump since 2002.

The Dow sank

137 points, or 1.1%, to 11988 in afternoon trading, falling below 12000 for the first time since mid-March. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index shed 14, or 1.1%, to 1275. The broad index has notched six weeks of declines, the longest losing streak since 2008.

Two closely watched stock indexes turned negative for the year during parts of Friday's session. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 31 points, or 1.1%, to 2654. The small-cap Russell turned fell 11 points, or 1.4%, to 781.

Investors were dour after U.S. May import prices showed a surprise rise of 0.2%, hinting at an inflation push coming into the U.S. from abroad. Overseas, European stocks dropped amid persistent worries over Greek debt and a surprise interest-rate increase by the Bank of Korea helped drive some Asian bourses sharply lower.