Stocks fell broadly Thursday on Wall Street and added to the week’s losses as markets remain anxious about the prospect of more aggressive action by the Federal Reserve to fight inflation, per the AP.
- The Dow fell 543 points, or 1.6%, to 32,254.
- The S&P 500 fell 73 points, or 1.8%, to 3,918.
- The Nasdaq fell 237 points, or 2%, to 11,3387.
- The cryptocurrency sector continued to reel after the collapse of crypto-friendly Silvergate Bank, with bitcoin down more than 1,400 points and threatening to fall below $20,000.
The stock market drop follows two days of testimony before Congress by Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who said the central bank was prepared to continue making big interest rate increases if necessary. Fears about a persistently aggressive Fed have been weighing on major indexes, all of which are on track for weekly losses. A government report on Thursday showed that the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits last week jumped by the most in five months, but layoffs remain historically low. The US government’s more comprehensive report on hiring is scheduled for Friday.
Companies, meanwhile, have been cautious about their prospects through 2023 with uncertainty about the direction of the economy and inflation. General Motors fell 4.4% after joining a long list of companies with plans to trim its workforce amid worries about a recession. Investors were also focusing on a mix of corporate news that sent several stocks sharply higher and lower. Toymaker Build-A-Bear Workshop jumped 24.2% after reporting strong fourth-quarter financial results. JPMorgan Chase fell 5.5% after the bank sued its former executive Jes Staley, alleging that he aided in hiding Jeffrey Epstein's yearslong sex abuse and trafficking in order to keep the financier as a client.
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