US stocks ended Wednesday’s session mixed with none of the major averages posting changes of more than 0.3%.
The S&P 500 fell 0.1%, the Dow gained 0.2% and the Nasdaq fell 0.03%.
Bitcoin was one of the biggest movers of the day, falling below $20,000 at one point and hovering just above that key level at the close of the US stock market. West Texas Intermediate crude futures briefly rose above $113 a barrel for the first time in two weeks before falling, while the 10-year Treasury yield fell below 3.15%.
The latest bout of volatility in markets came amid renewed concern about the impact of inflation on the US economy’s growth prospects. On Wednesday, first quarter US GDP was revised down to show an annualized contraction of 1.6% as personal consumption was weaker than previously reported. And a separate report earlier this week showed a drop in U.S. consumer confidence to a 16-month low and a deterioration in near-term expectations to a nine-year low, prompting the concern that consumers will curb spending in anticipation of persistent prices.
Given these and other recent reports, some Federal Reserve officials have pointed to the risk that inflation expectations will settle among consumers, prompting the central bank to maintain its hawkish stance for now.
“The fact that the prominent prices of gasoline and food remain high suggests that there is some risk that the long-term inflation expectations of households and businesses will continue to rise,” said Loretta Mester, president of the Reserve Cleveland Federal. he said in a statement Wednesday.
She suggested that she would support another one Interest rate increase of 75 basis points in July if economic conditions look similar through the Fed meeting next month, echoing the the support of other officials recently for this hike. Markets are currently pricing in a greater than 80% chance of a 75 basis point rate hike eventually happening in July. according to data from the CME group.
Those expectations of a series of larger-than-usual rate hikes have remained a pressure point for tech stocks, especially, which are priced heavily on the prospect of future earnings growth. The Nasdaq Composite remains firmly in a bear market, down 28.5% year-to-date, and both the information technology and communications services sectors within the S&P 500 have lagged the index wider
The story continues
“Inflation fears remain, and the Fed will have to act more aggressively and raise interest rates further, and that’s very, very bad for tech stocks,” said Octavio Marenzi, director general of Opimas, on Yahoo Finance Live on Tuesday. “The Fed is not done with its interest rate hikes by any stretch of the imagination … I don’t expect any change anytime soon here. I think this is a bear market that has some legs.”
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 27: Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on June 27, 2022 in New York City. The Dow Jones Industrial Average opened lower in the morning following last week’s market recovery. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Moving
Pinterest (PINS) shares gained 1.3% after the company said Google and PayPal executive Bill Ready will replace Pinterest co-founder Ben Silbermann as CEO of the social media platform. Analysts have suggested Ready’s experience suggests it can further aid Pinterest’s expansion plans to develop shopping capabilities on its platform.
child (NIO) Shares fell 2.2% on Wednesday, extending losses after short seller Grizzly Research issued a report claiming the electric car maker engaged in “accounting shenanigans” to meet financial targets. Nio answered with one statement saying the report “has no merit and contains numerous errors.”
Upstart Holdings (UPST) Shares fell 10% on Wednesday after Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to Underweight from Equal Weight and cut the company’s price target to $19 a share from $88 previously, according to Bloomberg. Morgan Stanley suggested the consumer lending platform would be under pressure due to the cyclical nature of the business.
—
Emily McCormick is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter.
Click here for the latest stock market news and in-depth analysis, including the events that move stocks
Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
Download the Yahoo Finance app for apple or android
Follow Yahoo Finance at Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, LinkedIni YouTube
[ad_2]
Source link
