Wall Street slips as inflationary jitters persist

[Pelican Press 0]

Wall Street slips as inflationary jitters persist

Wall Street’s main stock indexes have dipped on worries that sticky inflation could impact the timing of the first interest-rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, roiling rate-sensitive stocks ahead of the central bank’s meeting next week.

Indexes closed lower on Thursday after producer prices data was stronger than expected, adding to concerns around inflation and sending the yield on the 10-year note to a two-week high.

Traders reined in bets of a June rate cut by the Fed to about 57 per cent from 73 per cent last week, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.

All eyes are now on next week’s Federal Reserve meeting for possible clues on the timing of the central bank’s rate-easing cycle.

“(People are looking for) more of the conversation that comes out of the Fed meeting indicating the probability of rate cuts this year, and then the subsequent release of the dot plots around where the Fed is expecting the future path of interest rates to go,” said Russell Hackmann, president at Hackmann Wealth Partners.

Adding to worries, production at US factories increased more than expected in February, but data for the month prior to that was revised sharply down, as manufacturing ******** hamstrung by higher interest rates.

The University of Michigan’s preliminary reading on the overall index of consumer sentiment came in at 76.5 this month, versus an estimated reading of 76.9.

Friday also marked the simultaneous expiry of quarterly derivatives contracts tied to stocks, index options and futures, also known as “triple witching”.

In early trading on Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 149.00 points, or 0.38 per cent, at 38,756.66, the S&P 500 was down 33.83 points, or 0.66 per cent, at 5,116.65, and the Nasdaq Composite was down 141.76 points, or 0.88 per cent, at 15,986.77.

Eight of the 11 major S&P 500 sectors were trading lower, with information technology being the worst hit, down 1.4 per cent.

Most megacap growth stocks were under pressure, with

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down 1.7 per cent, while AI giant Nvidia lost 0.6 per cent.

Semiconductor stocks fell 0.8 per cent, on track to snap their three-week winning streak. The global GTC developer conference from March 18 to 21 will be watched closely for AI-related announcements.

Micron Technology, however, rose 1.9 per cent after brokerage Citi raised its price target on the company to $US150 ($A228), the highest on Wall Street for the chipmaker, according to LSEG data.

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shed 13.7 per cent after it forecast second-quarter revenue below analysts’ estimates, following stiff competition and weak demand for its AI-integrated photography, illustration and video.

Ulta Beauty slid 6.7 per cent after forecasting full-year profit below Wall Street estimates, as elevated supply-chain costs and increased promotions hurt its margins.

Of the 498 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported quarterly earnings to date, 76.1 per cent beat analyst expectations, according to LSEG data.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.08-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.12-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P index recorded 14 new 52-week highs and no new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 24 new highs and 71 new lows.

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