US stocks fell on Friday after another hotter-than-expected inflation reading undermined the case for interest rate cuts. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell 0.5% in the wake of another record closing high, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) dipped 0.4%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell 0.7%. The Producer Price Index, a key gauge measuring wholesale inflation, jumped 0.3% in January from the prior month, compared with the 0.1% rise expected by economists.
The market has been on a ride this week as a series of mixed data prompted investors to keep reassessing their view of the US economy, Federal Reserve policy thinking, and the timing of interest rate cuts. Read more: What the Fed rate decision means for bank accounts, CDs, loans, and credit cards The Dow sank 500 points just a day after notching an all-time high as a surprisingly hot consumer inflation report spurred a rout earlier this week. Stocks have made up their deep losses after a steep decline in retail sales, putting weekly wins within reach for the Dow and the S&P 50