{"id":13267,"date":"2022-05-13T02:38:10","date_gmt":"2022-05-13T02:38:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/stock-futures-fall-as-indexes-head-for-weekly-losses\/"},"modified":"2022-05-13T02:38:10","modified_gmt":"2022-05-13T02:38:10","slug":"stock-futures-fall-as-indexes-head-for-weekly-losses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/stock-futures-fall-as-indexes-head-for-weekly-losses\/","title":{"rendered":"Stock futures fall as indexes head for weekly losses"},"content":{"rendered":"
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US stock futures opened lower Thursday evening, with the major indexes heading for weekly losses as concerns over persistent inflation and the resilience of the US economy stirred up further volatility.<\/p>\n

Contracts on the S&P 500 dropped in late trading. Earlier, the index closed within striking distance of a bear market, typically defined as a close of at least 20% from a recent record high. The index has declined by just over 18% from its Jan. 3 record close, and paced toward a weekly drop of 4.7% if losses hold through the end of Friday’s session.<\/p>\n

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite each also headed for weekly losses of 3.6% and 6.4%, respectively. Treasury yields have spiked and then pared gains back this week, with the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield ending Thursday below 2.9%. Bitcoin prices briefly sank below $ 27,000 on Thursday to reach the lowest level since Dec. 2020, as a cratering in prices of Luna further reverberated across the broader cryptocurrency market.<\/p>\n

The market gyrations this week coincided with two major inflation reports that came in hotter-than-expected. Thursday’s Producer Price Index showed an 11% year-over-year rise in wholesale prices last month, with this rate moderating only slightly from March’s all-time high rate of 11.5%. And the Consumer Price Index released earlier this week showed a still-elevated 8.3% annual increase in prices paid by consumers last month.<\/p>\n

“Inflation has certainly become not only topical, but a real issue for the broader market, as the Fed has also increased its outlook for the number of [interest rate] hikes needed, “Sonali Pier, managing director and portfolio manager at Pimco, told Yahoo Finance Live on Thursday.” In terms of the effect of inflation, it’s really at this point, we’re going to see if the Fed raising rates, unwinding some of the balance sheet, can take off some of that inflation froth. Because it’s quite high, and it’s starting to impact companies – from their ability to push through from a pricing power perspective, as well as consumers, whether that’s at the gas pump or as a result of food increases and the like. “<\/p>\n