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Stocks, Bond Yields Fall Sharply 03/22 16:12
Wall Street was roiled Friday by new signs that global economic growth is
slowing.
(AP) -- Wall Street was roiled Friday by new signs that global economic
growth is slowing. The jitters triggered a sell-off in stocks and sent bond
yields sharply lower, flashing a possible recession warning.
The wave of selling knocked 460 points off the Dow Jones Industrial Average
and gave the benchmark S&P 500 index its worst day since Jan. 3. The Russell
2000 index of smaller company stocks fell more than the rest of the market as
traders offloaded risker assets.
Worried investors shifted money into bonds, which sent yields much lower.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury dropped to 2.43 percent from 2.54 percent
late Thursday, a big move.
The slide in bond yields hurt bank stocks which, along with technology
companies, accounted for much of the broad decline in stocks. The utilities
sector was the only one to eke out a gain.
"What's really giving investors concern today is this weak global economic
data here in the U.S. and in Europe," said Jeff Kravetz, regional investment
director for U.S. Bank Wealth Management.
Smaller company stocks are often the first to be sold by investors looking
to reduce risk, which explains why the Russell 2000 was down more than the rest
of the market. Small companies, which are more dependent on the U.S. economy
than big multinationals, tend so suffer more in economic downturns.
"When investors feel nervous about the economy and the outlook for the stock
market, they want to sell the riskiest types of stocks, and that would
definitely be small caps," Kravetz said.
The S&P 500 index dropped 54.17 points, or 1.9 percent, to 2,800.71. The Dow
gave up 460.19 points, or 1.8 percent, to 25,502.32.
The Nasdaq composite, which is heavily weighted with technology stocks, slid
196.29 points, or 2.5 percent, to 7,642.67. The Russell 2000 lost 56.49 points,
or 3.6 percent, to 1,505.92.
European stocks also finished sharply lower Friday.
Despite wavering from gains to losses throughout the week, the S&P 500 index
is still up more than 11 percent so far in 2019, which still counts as a
blockbuster start to a year.
The fear that gripped investors Friday was fueled by a steadily dimming
outlook for the global economy. China, the world's second-largest economy after
the United States, is weakening. And other economies that depend heavily on
purchases in China have suffered as a result.
Factory production in the euro currency alliance, for instance, has fallen
at its steepest rate in about six years. In Germany, Europe's largest economy,
a survey of purchasing manager manufacturers posted its sharpest production
drop in nearly six years. Orders to German factories have also tumbled.
Key bond yields fell this week to their lowest levels in more than a year
after the Federal Reserve said it was seeing slower growth in the economy and
no longer expected to raise interest rates this year.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which is used to set rates
on mortgages and many other kinds of loans, is now sharply lower from its
recent high of 3.23 percent in early October.
In another worrying sign, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell Friday
below the yield on the three-month Treasury bill. When that kind of "inversion"
in bond yields occurs, economists fear that it can signal a recession within
the coming year. That signal isn't always correct, however.
The prospects of slowing global economic growth has motivated investors to
rebalance their holdings as they "digest the new reality," said Marina
Severinovsky, investment strategist at Schroeders. "We're sort of coming back
to Earth."
Central banks have been positioning themselves to deal with the slowdown,
she said, and that includes the Federal Reserve's expectations for no rate
increases this year.
Earlier this month the European Central Bank said it would push back the
earliest date for interest rate increases. It also said it would offer
ultra-cheap loans to banks, supporting their ability to keep lending.
"It's very positive that, not just the Fed, but other policy makers have
acknowledged the situation is kind of dangerous on the global slowdown and are
taking action," Severinovsky said.
The decline in bond yields threatened the profitability of banks because it
forces them to charge lower interest rates on loans. Bank of America slid 4.2
percent, JPMorgan Chase lost 3 percent, Citigroup dropped 4.6 percent and Wells
Fargo fell 3.1 percent.
Technology companies, which would stand to lose more than other sectors in a
slowing economy, also took heavy losses. Western Digital gave up 6.5 percent
and chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices slid 5.4 percent.
Boeing dropped 2.8 percent after Indonesia's flag carrier became the first
airline to seek to cancel an order of 737 Max 8 jets, which have been involved
in two fatal crashes in the past six months.
Nike stumbled 6.6 percent after disappointing sales in its vital North
America market fell short of analysts' forecasts and it warned of a sales
slowdown.
Energy futures finished mostly lower. Benchmark U.S. crude oil slid 1.6
percent to settle at $59.04 a barrel. Brent crude fell 1.2 percent to close at
$67.03 a barrel.
Wholesale gasoline added 0.3 percent to $1.32 a gallon, heating oil dropped
1.1 percent to $1.97 a gallon and natural gas fell 2.4 percent to $2.75 per
1,000 cubic feet.
Gold gained 0.4 percent to $1,312.30 an ounce, silver lost 0.2 percent to
$15.41 an ounce and copper gave up 2.2 percent to $2.84 a pound.
The dollar fell to 110.07 yen from 110.79 Japanese yen on Thursday. The euro
weakened to $1.1294 from $1.1354.
(BE)
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