US Markets
Oil and yields rattle stocks as tech leads the slide
A jump in crude, Treasury yields and volatility hits U.S. equities, with megacap tech and consumer stocks taking the biggest punch.
U.S. stocks close red across the board. The S&P 500 falls 1.2% to 7,408.3, the Nasdaq Comp. drops 2.2% to 25,137.7, the Dow loses 1.0% to 51,711.6 and the Russell 2000 slips 0.7% to 2,940.2. The tape is messy, with the S&P 500 trading between 7,443.6 and 7,383.2 before a late bounce.
The pressure shows up in risk gauges and rates. The VIX jumps 12.4% to 18.7, while the 9-day VIX rises 7.7% to 18.15. Treasury yields also move higher, with the 5-year at 4.461%, the 10-year at 4.703% and the 30-year at 5.171%. CNBC Markets ties the move to surging oil and renewed inflation fear.
Sector performance is sharply uneven. Industrials add 1.7% and Health gains 1.3%, while Utilities rise 0.6% and Energy edges up 0.3%. On the other side, Communication Services falls 3.5%, Discretionary drops 4.6%, Staples lose 1.4% and Tech slips 1.0%.
Options traders are also leaning cautious. SPY shows a put-call ratio of 1.19, while QQQ sits at 1.07. The most active SPY strikes are 740.0 for calls and 737.0 for puts, with QQQ’s most active strikes at 695.0 and 690.0.