Wall Street suffered its worst day in eight weeks on Wednesday, hit by weak earnings, lackluster economic data and no movement in Washington as the deadline for a default looms.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> dropped 197.76 points, or 1.58 percent, to 12,303.54. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> lost 26.95 points, or 2.02 percent, to 1,304.99. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> fell 75.17 points, or 2.65 percent, to 2,764.79.

(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Kenneth Barry)