The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, dropped 5.26 to 291.40 Tuesday.
"The major averages retreated as the rout in crude oil prices continued, leading investors to flee to safe havens ranging from government debt to utility stocks," said Bob Williams, senior vice president and managing director of Simmons First Investment Group Inc. in Little Rock.
America's Car-Mart jumped 1.3 percent on near normal volume, he said.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business on 02/03/2016