Economic Information Agency, October 8 - US stocks retreated from recent highs on Wednesday (October 7), with all three major indices closing lower. Persistently high yields on long-term US Treasuries weighed on market sentiment as investors worry about sustained inflationary pressures and a high-interest-rate environment. On the same day, the Federal Reserve released the minutes from its September meeting, showing that while Fed officials were divided on the rationale for further rate hikes, most believed that additional rate increases this year could still be appropriate if inflation remains above the 2% target.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 341.41 points, or 0.66%, at 51,179.87; the S&P 500 fell 17.16 points, or 0.22%, to 7,801.77; the Nasdaq Composite declined 61.2 points, or 0.22%, to 27,538.69.
Large technology stocks showed mixed performance. SpaceX (US.SPCX) dropped 2.5%, as market attention focused on reports that the company is seeking around $40 billion in financing to support purchases of Nvidia chips; Nvidia (US.NVDA) fell 0.7%, Meta (US.META) declined 2.4%, and Tesla (US.TSLA) slipped 0.8%. On the other hand, Apple (US.AAPL) rose 0.9%, Alphabet's Google (US.GOOG) gained 0.8%, and Amazon (US.AMZN) advanced 1.4%.
*Dollar remains strong, yen weak*
In the foreign exchange market, the dollar held firm, with the US Dollar Index rising about 0.4% to 102.25. The dollar-yen pair remained strong, briefly climbing to around 158.5, keeping the yen weak; the pair traded around 158 during the session, little changed from the previous day. The euro weakened against the dollar, pressured by fiscal and political risks in France, briefly dipping near 1.1164. The euro was down about 0.5% on the day, trading near 1.119 against the dollar.
*Gold prices retreat, spot gold down 1.3%*
Gold prices declined under pressure from rising US dollar strength and higher Treasury yields. Spot gold fell approximately 1.3% to $4,109 per ounce, marking the lowest level since August 5; New York futures gold dropped 1.3% to $4,130.
International oil prices moved narrowly. New York crude futures were at $88.91 per barrel, down 0.5%; Brent crude futures stood at $100.95 per barrel, up 0.3%.
*Fed meeting minutes: officials divided on rationale for rate hikes*
The Federal Reserve released the minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting held on September 15-16, which revealed that officials were not fully aligned on the justification for the recent rate hike. Some officials viewed the hike primarily as a measure to prevent supply shocks such as energy price increases from spreading more broadly into prices, while others believed the hike was necessary to counter inflationary pressures driven by demand.
The minutes indicated that most officials believed that if inflation continues to run above the Fed's 2% target, further rate hikes this year could still be appropriate; some officials even suggested that current interest rate levels are only mildly restrictive, or perhaps not restrictive at all.
Market focus will now shift toward the upcoming third-quarter earnings season, as investors closely watch whether corporate earnings can reflect returns on artificial intelligence investments, as well as the impact of inflation and high interest rates on US consumer demand. (yc)
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 341.41 points, or 0.66%, at 51,179.87; the S&P 500 fell 17.16 points, or 0.22%, to 7,801.77; the Nasdaq Composite declined 61.2 points, or 0.22%, to 27,538.69.
Large technology stocks showed mixed performance. SpaceX (US.SPCX) dropped 2.5%, as market attention focused on reports that the company is seeking around $40 billion in financing to support purchases of Nvidia chips; Nvidia (US.NVDA) fell 0.7%, Meta (US.META) declined 2.4%, and Tesla (US.TSLA) slipped 0.8%. On the other hand, Apple (US.AAPL) rose 0.9%, Alphabet's Google (US.GOOG) gained 0.8%, and Amazon (US.AMZN) advanced 1.4%.
*Dollar remains strong, yen weak*
In the foreign exchange market, the dollar held firm, with the US Dollar Index rising about 0.4% to 102.25. The dollar-yen pair remained strong, briefly climbing to around 158.5, keeping the yen weak; the pair traded around 158 during the session, little changed from the previous day. The euro weakened against the dollar, pressured by fiscal and political risks in France, briefly dipping near 1.1164. The euro was down about 0.5% on the day, trading near 1.119 against the dollar.
*Gold prices retreat, spot gold down 1.3%*
Gold prices declined under pressure from rising US dollar strength and higher Treasury yields. Spot gold fell approximately 1.3% to $4,109 per ounce, marking the lowest level since August 5; New York futures gold dropped 1.3% to $4,130.
International oil prices moved narrowly. New York crude futures were at $88.91 per barrel, down 0.5%; Brent crude futures stood at $100.95 per barrel, up 0.3%.
*Fed meeting minutes: officials divided on rationale for rate hikes*
The Federal Reserve released the minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting held on September 15-16, which revealed that officials were not fully aligned on the justification for the recent rate hike. Some officials viewed the hike primarily as a measure to prevent supply shocks such as energy price increases from spreading more broadly into prices, while others believed the hike was necessary to counter inflationary pressures driven by demand.
The minutes indicated that most officials believed that if inflation continues to run above the Fed's 2% target, further rate hikes this year could still be appropriate; some officials even suggested that current interest rate levels are only mildly restrictive, or perhaps not restrictive at all.
Market focus will now shift toward the upcoming third-quarter earnings season, as investors closely watch whether corporate earnings can reflect returns on artificial intelligence investments, as well as the impact of inflation and high interest rates on US consumer demand. (yc)
