US stocks closed slightly lower on Tuesday as Treasury yields hovered near multidecade highs, but traders trimmed their bets on another Federal Reserve rate hike in October after a key Fed official said there is "no urgency" to tighten further.
The S&P 500 lost 11.12 points, or 0.14 percent, to end at 7,672.57, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 17.72 points, or 0.08 percent, to 26,802.66. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 136.10 points, or 0.26 percent, to 51,345.41.
Williams Calms Hike Fears
New York Fed chief John Williams said the US central bank does not need to raise interest rates with urgency, even though a further increase may be required later this year. The Fed raised its key rate earlier this month by 25 basis points to a range of 3.75 to 4.00 percent to combat stubbornly high inflation.
Following Williams' remarks, traders now see roughly a 50-50 chance of a quarter-point hike at the Fed's October meeting, based on pricing in fed funds futures — down from nearly 70 percent earlier in the day.
Yields Remain the Big Worry
The US 10-year Treasury yield, another big worry for markets, stayed around multi-year highs near 5.24 percent. Elevated yields have weighed on equity sentiment globally, even as Asian markets opened higher on Wednesday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 up 1.4 percent and South Korea's Kospi gaining 1 percent.
Crude oil prices were higher in early Asian trading on Wednesday, with Brent crude hovering around $103 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate near $89.30 — still far above pre-war levels as the Middle East conflict continues to disrupt flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
Sources: Dow Jones / US Stock Market Today Live — The Economic Times; Sensex, Nifty today: GIFT Nifty signals cautious start — Financial Express
The S&P 500 lost 11.12 points, or 0.14 percent, to end at 7,672.57, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 17.72 points, or 0.08 percent, to 26,802.66. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 136.10 points, or 0.26 percent, to 51,345.41.
Williams Calms Hike Fears
New York Fed chief John Williams said the US central bank does not need to raise interest rates with urgency, even though a further increase may be required later this year. The Fed raised its key rate earlier this month by 25 basis points to a range of 3.75 to 4.00 percent to combat stubbornly high inflation.
Following Williams' remarks, traders now see roughly a 50-50 chance of a quarter-point hike at the Fed's October meeting, based on pricing in fed funds futures — down from nearly 70 percent earlier in the day.
Yields Remain the Big Worry
The US 10-year Treasury yield, another big worry for markets, stayed around multi-year highs near 5.24 percent. Elevated yields have weighed on equity sentiment globally, even as Asian markets opened higher on Wednesday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 up 1.4 percent and South Korea's Kospi gaining 1 percent.
Crude oil prices were higher in early Asian trading on Wednesday, with Brent crude hovering around $103 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate near $89.30 — still far above pre-war levels as the Middle East conflict continues to disrupt flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
Sources: Dow Jones / US Stock Market Today Live — The Economic Times; Sensex, Nifty today: GIFT Nifty signals cautious start — Financial Express
