United States markets closed lower on Thursday, following global markets downward after a steep drop in China’s exports. Shares of mining and chemicals companies and banks took some of the largest losses. Weakness in China, the world’s second-largest economy, could slow growth in the United States, its largest.

KEEPING SCORE The Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index ended the day 0.3 percent lower. The Nasdaq composite index lost 0.5 percent.

CHINA WORRIES China’s exports fell 10 percent in September compared with a year ago. That was a much bigger drop than in August and also a larger decline than analysts had expected. China has been crucial to global economic growth for a quarter-century. Since the summer of 2015, stocks have periodically been agitated by worries that China’s economy was weakening.