Wall Street closed lower as US inflation data offered little comfort to investors

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, May 11, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Wall Street’s main indexes closed lower on Wednesday, led by a sharp drop in the Nasdaq, after US inflation data did little to allay investor concerns about interest rates.

The Labor Department’s monthly CPI report indicated that inflation may have peaked in April but is likely to remain strong enough to keep the Federal Reserve on top of the cooldown. Read more

The consumer price index rose 0.3 percent last month, the smallest rise since last August, while economists polled by Reuters expected consumer prices to rise 0.2 percent in April.

“There was not enough positive surprise to support the market,” said Quincy Crosby, chief equity strategist at LPL Financial in Charlotte, North Carolina.

“This market is still trying to control whether the Fed will be able to rein in inflation early.”

consumer dictionary (.SPLRCD) and technology (.SPLRCT) He led declines among the S&P 500 sectors. The possibility of higher interest rates weighed on growth stocks in particular.

apple (AAPL.O) Stocks were the most heavily weighted on the Nasdaq and S&P 500 indexes.

According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 . index (.SPX) It lost 65.51 points by 1.64% to close at 3,935.54 points, while the Nasdaq Composite lost. (nineteenth) It lost 370.94 points, equivalent to 3.16%, to 11,366.73 points. Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) It fell 325.42 points, or 1.01%, to 31,835.32 points.

“There’s a lot of focus right now on Apple,” Crosby said. “Because of its weight, Apple is a market leader in many ways.”

energy (.SPNY) Stocks rose and helped cap some declines in the S&P 500 and Dow.

Investors are eager to see more data on inflation on Thursday, when the US Producer Price Index data is due.

Stocks have fallen sharply this year after concerns about how aggressively the central bank will raise interest rates, and about the Ukraine war and the recent coronavirus shutdowns in China.

Coinbase Global Inc (COIN.O) It fell after its first-quarter revenue missed estimates as turmoil in global markets curbed investors’ appetite for risky assets. Read more

(Carolyn Valitkevich reports). Additional reporting by Amruta Khandekar and Devik Jain in Bengaluru and Sinad Karo in New York. Editing by Aaron Coeur and Aurora Ellis

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