Stocks fell Monday as fears of a recession grew on Wall Street, and investors looked ahead to key inflation data this week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 112 points lower, or 0.3%. The S&P 500 slid 0.7%. The Nasdaq Composite lagged, falling 1%.
Tech stocks lagged in the premarket, with shares of Apple falling 1.3% and Google-parent Alphabet sliding 1%. Tesla shares fell nearly 3% after the firm said it will cut prices again on some electric vehicles.
Markets are coming off a choppy week as investors digested signs of a weakening labor market. However, the March jobs report on Friday showed a resilient economy and moderate inflation, which pushed stock futures and Treasury yields higher. The New York Stock Exchange was closed for Good Friday.
Nonfarm payrolls grew by 236,000 for the month, about in line with the Dow Jones estimate of 238,000, the Labor Department reported. The unemployment fell to 3.5%, against expectations that it would hold from the previous month at 3.6%.
The data is consistent with expectations of a slow-moving recession unfolding in the U.S. – one that doesn’t point to the immediate resolution of inflation concerns, according to Jason Pride, chief investment officer of Private Wealth at Glenmede.
“As such, the odds of another quarter-point rate hike in May should go higher as the data does not appear to justify a Fed pause,” he added.
Investors are in for a busy week of economic data, including the latest consumer price index and producer price index data – due out Wednesday and Thursday, respectively – which will be key in determining if or when the Fed will pause or put an end to its rate hiking campaign.
“Our guess is the equity market needs economic Goldilocks, a bit of slowing to continue to cool inflation expectations, but not too much to spark ‘hard landing’ fears,” Raymond James’ Tavis C. McCourt wrote in a Sunday note.
They’ll also get the first batch of companies reporting first-quarter financial results. Tilray Brands kicks things off Monday. The major banks – JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Citigroup – will report on Friday.