- A renewed surge in treasury yields knocked the wind out of the stock market, while geopolitical tensions and bleak forecasts from Walmart and Home Depot also soured investors' mood.
- Wall Street's growing fears that the Fed is nowhere near finishing its war on inflation, let alone pivoting, continued to burn bond investors who were betting on rate cuts this year. As traders increased their Fed bets, US yields hit new highs for 2023. Equities, the last to join the so-called everything rally, are now showing signs of exhaustion.
- In a selloff that engulfed every major group in the S&P 500, the index erased its monthly gain and experienced its worst slump since mid-December. Over 90% of its stock dropped. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has lost its gains from 2023. The Nasdaq 100 fell more than 2% as technology stocks underperformed. Equity volatility has risen after remaining stubbornly low earlier this year.
- While recent economic data suggest the United States may be able to avoid a recession, a hawkish Fed and higher earnings projections make the risk-reward ratio for equities "very poor," according to Morgan Stanley's Michael Wilson. That does not bode well for the market after a sharp rally that has left stocks at their most expensive levels since 2007, according to the equity risk premium measure.
- Others on Wall Street have also warned that the stock market's recovery may have gone too far.