Dow sheds 250 points, S&P 500 slides to start the week; European markets close mixed after a choppy week
U.S. stocks fell to start the week Monday as investors weighed surging oil prices, economic worries and major third-quarter earnings results ahead.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 250.19 points, or 0.7%, to close at 34,496.06. The blue chip average was up more than 200 points at its intraday high. The S&P 500 ticked down 0.7% to 4,361.19. The Nasdaq Composite dipped 0.6% to 14,486.20.
U.S. oil benchmark WTI crude oil topped $82 a barrel at its session highs before trading around $80 Monday. The surging prices added to looming concerns about inflation.
Meanwhile, Goldman on Monday cut its U.S. economic growth forecast. The firm lowered its 2022 growth estimate to 4% from 4.4% and took its 2021 estimate down a tick to 5.6% from 5.7%. The firm cited the expiration of fiscal support from Congress and a slower-than-expected recovery in consumer spending, specifically services.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 hovered around the flatline and finished flat, with travel and leisure stocks shedding 1% while basic resources gained 3%.
In corporate news, Italy’s FIM-CISL union said on Friday that the global semiconductor shortage would hit Stellantis’ Italian production harder and for longer than the Covid-19 pandemic. The carmaker has halted operations at some of its factories in Europe and the U.S., and expects to produce 1.4 million fewer vehicles this year.
Source: CNBC, Investing.com