US markets end lower on Wednesday

11 Nov 2021 Evaluate

The US markets ended lower on Wednesday, extending the pullback seen in the previous session, after the Labor Department released a report showing consumer prices increased by more than expected in the month of October, lifting the annual rate of price growth to its highest level in over thirty years. The report said the consumer price index jumped by 0.9 percent in October after rising by 0.4 percent in September. Street had expected consumer prices to climb by 0.6 percent. Excluding higher prices for food and energy, core consumer prices still increased by 0.6 percent in October after inching up by 0.2 percent in September. Core prices were expected to rise by 0.4 percent. The Labor Department also said the annual rate of growth in consumer prices accelerated to 6.2 percent in October from 5.4 percent in September, reaching the highest level since November of 1990.

The annual rate of growth in core prices also accelerated to 4.6 percent from 4.0 percent, reflecting the biggest jump in prices since August of 1991. The acceleration in the rate of consumer price inflation raised concerns about the outlook for interest rates even though the Federal Reserve has signaled it will not be in a hurry to begin raising rates. On the sector front, substantial weakness was also visible among semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 2.8 percent nosedive by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. The index continued to give back ground after reaching a record intraday high in early trading on Tuesday. Steel stocks also extended the sharp pullback seen in the previous session, dragging the NYSE Arca Steel Index down by 2.4 percent to its lowest closing level in over seven months.

Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 240.04 points or 0.66 percent to 36,079.94, Nasdaq declined 263.84 points or 1.66 percent to 15,622.71 and S&P 500 was down by 38.54 points or 0.82 percent to 4,646.71.

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