Blindsided by a subpar report on U.S. economic growth, Wall Street reacted swiftly and strongly Thursday as all three major indices saw significant declines.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than 700 points shortly after the opening bell before finishing down 375 points (0.98%) to 38,085.

The S&P 500 fell by 0.46% to 5,048, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite declined by 0.64% to 15,611.

The sharp declines came after fresh data revealed the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) grew by only 1.6% in the first quarter, a far cry from the 2.4% forecast by Dow.

The report also showed more stubbornness from inflation. Consumer prices rose at a 3.4% rate, well ahead of analysts' expectations and above the previous quarter's 1.8% pace.