US stocks trade mixed ahead of Fed's economic report while investors eye more big rate hikes
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
- US stocks opened mixed on Wednesday with the Nasdaq up after seven consecutive declines.
- The Federal Reserve will release its beige book report in the afternoon, ahead of the next FOMC meeting later this month.
- A Wednesday Wall Street Journal article suggested that another 75-basis-point rate hike could hit in September.
US stocks opened mixed ahead of the Federal Reserve's beige book survey of regional business and economic conditions later on Wednesday.
The report comes as the Fed is due to meet on September 20-21. While some commentators have forecasted smaller rate hikes moving forward, a Wednesday Wall Street Journal article suggested that another 75-basis-point hike could hit in September, which would be the third consecutive move of that size.
Through 2022, the labor market has showed strength, with employers adding 315,000 jobs in August. Next week, markets will be watching as the US Labor Department releases its inflation report for the month of August, which will hold implications for the next potential rate hike.
Here's where US indexes stood as the market opened 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday:
- S&P 500: 3,907.22, down 0.02%
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: 31,112.97, down 0.10%
- Nasdaq Composite: 11,581.54, up 0.32%
The US dollar has surged 13% against the euro and 20% against the yen this year. Aggressive Fed policy and recession fears have pushed the greenback to a 20-year high.
China's yuan, however, has weakened even as Beijing tries to prop up the currency. On Wednesday, it slipped closer to the key threshold of 7 per dollar.
"Big Short" investor Michael Burry said the epic market crash he predicted is already in full swing. The famed commentator has repeatedly sounded the alarm on speculative assets, and flagged crypto and meme stocks as early victims to the current downturn.
Meanwhile, China and India could take advantage of a Russian oil price cap and buy more cheap barrels, according to US Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo. At a Tuesday conference, he voiced hopefulness that the two Asian nations would join the US-led price cap coalition.
In Europe, Germany is making a U-turn on nuclear energy policy, as it plans to keep two plants as backups while the natural gas crisis continues to intensify.
France, for its part, is reviving a disused gas pipeline to aid Germany. It will deliver about 2% of Germany's natural gas needs this winter, following Russia's halt of Nord Stream 1 flows.
Oil prices dropped, with West Texas Intermediate down 2.95% to $84.22 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, fell 2.77% to $90.26 a barrel.
Gold edged lower 0.23% to $1,709.00 per ounce. The 10-year yield ticked lower 4 basis points to 3.302%.
Bitcoin dropped 0.11% to $18,850.11.