U.S. stock fell Wednesday as oil prices gained, renewing inflation fears.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed about 180 points, or 0.5%. The S&P 500 declined 0.5%. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.9%.
Traders digested the latest news on the Ukraine-Russia war. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for more pressure on Russia from other countries as the conflict appears to be entering a stalemate.
Oil prices ticked higher on the day, with U.S. crude gaining about 4% to more than $113 per barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, advanced about 4% to roughly $120.
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield topped 2.41% at its session high Wednesday, the highest since May 2019.
Famed activist investor Carl Icahn said Tuesday an economic downturn could becoming.
“I think there could very well could be a recession or even worse,” Icahn, founder and chairman of Icahn Enterprises, said on CNBC’s “Closing Bell Overtime” to Scott Wapner.
Still, the S&P 500 is only 5% off its record and all three averages are on track to close the month higher. The benchmark index has recouped its losses since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
Wall Street is coming off a strong session Tuesday in which the Dow jumped more than 250 points and the S&P 500 climbed 1.1%.
Federal Reserve Chair Powell on Monday promised aggressive action on inflation.The comments came after the Fed last week raised interest rates for the first time since 2018 and forecast a plan to hike rates by a quarter-point at each of the remaining six meetings of 2022.
“The labor market is very strong, and inflation is much too high,” the central bank chief told the National Association for Business Economics on Monday. “If we conclude that it is appropriate to move more aggressively by raising the federal funds rate by more than 25 basis points at a meeting or meetings, we will do so.”
Comments