The S&P 500 Index dropped to session lows, with megacaps Amazon.com Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Nvidia Corp. leading declines. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 underperformed, retreating more than 1.5%, as growth-related stocks bore the brunt of the selling.Treasuries fell across the board, sending yields higher amid a bond selloff ignited by hotter-than-expected UK. Yields briefly spiked to session highs after US retail sales data.
US stocks have rallied on signs of peaking inflation and an earnings-reporting season that saw four out of five companies meeting or beating estimates. Yet, prospects of the Fed continuing to raise rates to cool stubbornly high inflation and tip the economy into a recession has weighed on sentiment. In corporate news, Target Corp. fell as profit lagged behind Wall Street’s estimates, while Lowe’s Cos. gained after the home-improvement retailer reported earnings that beat estimates even as renovators wrestle with a slumping US housing market.