An eye-opening report on inflation that was hotter than expected slammed into the bond market on Wednesday, sending yields jumping, and helped knock stocks lower.
Prices for beef, electricity and other items that consumers paid in October surged from year-ago levels at the fastest overall pace since 1990, raising expectations in the market that the Federal Reserve will have to raise short-term interest rates more quickly off their record low. That sent Treasury yields to their biggest gains in months.
Rising yields tend to be a drag on stocks, particularly those seen as the most expensive or whose expectations for big profit growth is furthest in the future. Drops for several high-growth tech stocks weighed on Wall Street, as did a slide in energy stocks following a decline in the price of crude oil.
The S&P 500 was 1% lower, as of 2:34 p.m. Eastern time, with losses accelerating as the day progressed. It’s on pace for a second straight drop, though it’s coming off a string of setting a record high in each of eight straight days.
