S&P 500 Slumps Most in One Month; Dollar Rallies: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) -- Stocks dropped the most in a month amid concern that the global economic recovery will lose momentum with further shutdowns to contain a fast-spreading pandemic. The dollar climbed with bonds.
The S&P 500 snapped a five-day winning streak. Giants Amazon.com Inc. and Facebook Inc. each slumped more than 2%, while Home Depot Inc. sank after the retailer posted weaker-than-expected results. Chinese stocks listed in the U.S. faced another wave of selling as authorities in Beijing ramped up their crackdown on some of the nation’s largest companies. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Baidu Inc. and JD.com Inc. slumped at least 3.5%.
U.S. homebuilder sentiment sank to a 13-month low in August amid high costs as well as continuing supply shortages. American retail sales fell in July by more than forecast, reflecting a steady shift in spending toward services and indicating consumers may be growing more price conscious as inflation picks up. While factory production strengthened the most in four months, manufacturers continued to face higher input prices and a near record number of job vacancies.
Investors are looking to next week’s Jackson Hole symposium for an update on Federal Reserve policy. Tuesday’s appearance by Chair Jerome Powell at a town hall for educators may be used as an opportunity to prime the market for what’s coming.
“We’re essentially in a bit of a holding period ahead of Jackson Hole,” wrote Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda Europe. “While there is a fair amount of data releases this week, some of which may carry a little more weight than others, it’s all about the Fed in these markets at the minute, and that’s unlikely to change unless the delta situation gets dramatically worse.”
The U.S. government is poised to being offering booster shots as soon as next month, with the country facing a renewed wave of infections fueled by the highly transmissible delta variant. New Zealand will enter a lockdown after reporting its first community transmission since February. Switzerland recorded its biggest jump in infections in months, while South Africa expects a fourth wave to start in early December.
Here are some events to watch this week:
Reserve Bank of New Zealand policy decision and briefing by Governor Adrian Orr WednesdayFOMC minutes released WednesdayBank Indonesia rate decision and Governor Perry Warjiyo briefing Thursday
For more market analysis read our MLIV blog.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The S&P 500 fell 1.2% as of 12:52 p.m. New York timeThe Nasdaq 100 fell 1.4%The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.3%The MSCI World index fell 1.1%
Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.6%The euro fell 0.6% to $1.1711The British pound fell 0.9% to $1.3731The Japanese yen fell 0.3% to 109.56 per dollar
Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined two basis points to 1.25%Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at -0.47%Britain’s 10-year yield declined one basis point to 0.56%
Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.2% to $66.46 a barrelGold futures fell 0.3% to $1,784.60 an ounce
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
Subscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.
©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
