Stocks slid further on Thursday, sending the Nasdaq below 1,300 for the first time since November 21, as worries about the fate of General Motors and the major banks fueled a broad sell-off.

* Apprehension ahead of Friday's February payrolls report weighed on the market.

* The Dow Jones industrial average was down 303.62 points, or 4.42 percent, at 6,572.22. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 32.95 points, or 4.62 percent, at 679.92. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 51.23 points, or 3.78 percent, at 1,302.51, after hitting a session low at 1,298.33.

(Reporting by Ellis Mnyandu; Editing by Jan Paschal)

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