Most US stocks fall after a disappointing inflation update
NEW YORK (AP) — Most stocks fell on Wall Street on Thursday after a disappointing report said inflation was worse last month at the U.S. wholesale level than economists expected. But gains for Amazon and some other influential Big Tech companies helped mask the losses.
Seven out of every 10 stocks within the S&P 500 fell, though the index edged up by less than 0.1% to set another all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 11 points, or less than 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite dipped by less than 0.1% from its record set the day before.
The inflation report said that prices jumped 3.3% last month at the U.S. wholesale level from a year earlier. That was well above the 2.5% rate that economists had forecast, and it could hint at higher inflation ahead for U.S. shoppers as it makes its way through the system.
The data forced traders to second guess their widespread consensus that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates at its next meeting in September. Lower rates can boost investment prices and the economy by making it cheaper for U.S. households and businesses to borrow to buy houses, cars or equipment, but they also risk worsening inflation.
Thursday’s disappointing data followed an encouraging update earlier in the week on prices at the consumer level. A separate report on Thursday, meanwhile, said fewer U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week. That’s a good sign for workers, indicating that layoffs remain relatively low at a time when job openings have become more difficult to find.
But a solid job market could also give the Fed less reason to cut interest rates in the short term.
The data helped send Treasury yields higher in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.28% from 4.20% just before the data reports’ release and from 4.24% late Wednesday.