Stocks dropped amidst worsening inflation; oil spiked to reach record high for the last 7 year

The major indexes all shredded their gains in the first half of the session to end below the red line. Treasury rates rose across the curve, with the 10-year yield hovering around 1.61 percent, the highest level since June.

After registering a seventh straight weekly rise, West Texas intermediate crude oil futures jumped to session highs of $82 per barrel, adding to concerns about rising energy, commodity, and input prices. After hitting $84 per barrel, WTI crude futures hit their highest level since 2014, while Brent crude futures hit their highest level since 2018.

Market movements for today are as follows:

• The Dow Jones Industrial Average down by 0.72% or 250.19 points and at 34,496.06.
• S&P 500 Index decreased by 0.69% or 30.29 points and currently at 4,361.05.
• NASDAQ Composite Index slid to 14,486.20 after losing 93.34 points or 0.64%.
• Yield on 10 Year Treasury jumped by 4.1 basis points to 1.6120%.
• Gold down by $2.10 or 0.12% and now at $1,755.30 an ounce.
• Crude up by $3.10 or 3.26% and closed at $82.26 per barrel.

Stocks have been choppy in recent weeks as investors considered the equity market implications of continued price hikes against the background of slowing economic growth. Increased demand and supply-side constraints have driven commodity prices up, from oil and natural gas to cotton, and labor shortages have created the possibility of long-term wage rises and increased expenses for businesses.

In an email last week, Neil Dutta, head of U.S. economics at Renaissance Macro Research, said the September jobs report “had an inflationary feel with high wage growth, a rise in the workweek, and a reduction in [labor force] participation.”

Investors will receive the latest Consumer Price Index and Producer Price Index for September from the Bureau of Labor Statistics this week. Core consumer price rises, excluding food and energy, are likely to remain higher in comparison to previous years, coming in only slightly below June’s 30-year high. Meanwhile, producer prices are projected to have increased much more last month.

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