S&P 500 closes lower as investors tap brakes before Fed decision this week
The S&P 500 pulled back on Monday as investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s last meeting of the year later this week.
The broad market index fell 0.35% to close at 6,846.51, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 0.14% to settle at 23,545.90. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 215.67 points, or 0.45% to finish at 47,739.32.
Weighing on stock sentiment was the 10-year Treasury yield continuing its recent run higher. The benchmark has moved up this month despite the likelihood that the Fed cuts this week as investors fret about the state of inflation in the new year and whether the central bank will be able to continue easing.
Traders have grown increasingly hopeful over recent weeks that the Fed will lower interest rates once again after it issued a quarter percentage point cut at its meetings in September and October. According to CME’s FedWatch tool, fed funds futures are pricing in a roughly 90% chance of a decrease, up from under 67% a month ago.
The increasing optimism has recently been reflected in stocks, which scored their second positive week in a row. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq also notched four-day winning streaks on Friday, while the Dow saw its third positive session in four. Stocks received a boost on that day following the delayed release of softer-than-expected September core personal consumption expenditures price index data — one of the last major economic releases ahead of the Fed’s upcoming policy meeting.
Source : Cnbc.com
