Stocks in the United States weakened today. Investors weighed the chances of the US central bank (Fed) delaying an interest rate cut. Shares in electric car maker Tesla ended with a loss, with quarterly car deliveries falling for the first time in almost four years.
Indexes
The Dow Jones index fell 396.61 points, or one per cent, to 39,170.24 points. The broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index weakened 37.96 points, or 0.72 percent, to 5,205.81 points. The Nasdaq technology market index fell 156.38 points, or 0.95 percent, to 16,240.45 points.
“The ‘higher for longer’ narrative is coming back into play, despite the fact that the Fed does indeed expect to cut rates sometime this year,” said Quincy Krosby, a strategist at LPL Financial.
Recent solid news from the U.S. economy has raised doubts about whether the Fed will be able to cut interest rates three times this year, as it outlined in its latest forecast. Today’s statistics showed that new orders for US manufactured goods bounced off the bottom more than expected in February. The number of US job openings then held at a higher level.
Dollar
The U.S. dollar fell today against a basket of leading global currencies. The dollar first rose to its highest level in nearly five months on Monday’s report on manufacturing sector activity. However, it erased its gains after a new labour market report showed that job vacancies held at a higher level in February.
The dollar index, which tracks the dollar’s performance against a basket of six leading global currencies, fell 0.2 percent to 104.78 points. The euro strengthened 0.2 percent against the dollar to $1.0771. The dollar weakened slightly by 0.04 percent against the yen to JPY151.57. The euro rose 0.2 percent against the yen to JPY163.21.
source: ÄŒTK
