U.S. stocks fell Wednesday as oil prices gained, renewing inflation fears.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped about 200 points, or 0.6%. The S&P 500 declined 0.4%. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.5%.
Traders digested the latest news on the Ukraine-Russia war. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for more pressure on Russia from other countries as the conflict appears to be entering a stalemate.
Oil prices ticked higher on the day, with international oil benchmark Brent crude advancing about 4% to top $120 per barrel. U.S. crude gained more than 4% to about $114 per barrel.
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield surpassed 2.41% at its session high Wednesday, the highest since May 2019.
Famed activist investor Carl Icahn on Tuesday after the bell said an economic downturn could be coming.
“I think there could very well could be a recession or even worse,” Icahn, founder and chairman of Icahn Enterprises, said on CNBC’s “Closing Bell Overtime” to Scott Wapner.
Energy stocks rallied Wednesday as oil prices rose. Occidental Petroleum and Marathon Oil were among the top gainers on the S&P 500, respectively rising about 3% and 2%.
General Mills added more than 5% after the food maker reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings Wednesday and raised its full-year outlook.
On the downside, Adobe shares fell nearly 8% after the company forecasted lower-than-expected profit and revenue in its fiscal second quarter.
Wall Street is coming off a strong session Tuesday in which the Dow jumped more than 250 points and the S&P 500 climbed 1.1%. All three averages are on track to close the month higher. The S&P 500 has recouped its losses since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
Federal Reserve Chair Powell on Monday promised aggressive action on inflation. The comments came after the Fed last week raised interest rates for the first time since 2018 and forecast a plan to hike rates by a quarter-point at each of the remaining six meetings of 2022.
“The labor market is very strong, and inflation is much too high,” the central bank chief told the National Association for Business Economics on Monday. “If we conclude that it is appropriate to move more aggressively by raising the federal funds rate by more than 25 basis points at a meeting or meetings, we will do so.”
