Stocks Sell Off, Dow Drops 282 Points
Stocks took a beating today, with the Dow shedding 282 points and the S&P 500 logging its worst single-session drop since July 19. Both indexes snapped five-day win streaks in the process, as weak U.S. retail sales data and rising Covid-19 cases weighed on Wall Street. The Nasdaq closed deep in the red as well, tumbling triple digits as FAANG stocks continue to struggle. In turn, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX), Wall Street's "fear gauge," roared back to life, nabbing its highest single-day percentage gain since July 19.
The Dow Jones Average (DJI - 35, 343.28) fell 282.1 points or 0.8% for the day. Merck (MRK) topped the small list of blue-chip winners, rising 1.2%, while Home Depot (HD) fell 4.3% to pace the laggards.
The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 4,448.08) shed 31.6 points or 0.7% for the day. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 14,656.18) lost 137.6 points, or 0.9%, for the day.
Lastly, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX - 17.91) rose 1.8 points or 11.1%, for the day.
OIL PRICES CONTINUE RETREAT
Oil prices fell again, dragged down by demand woes in Asia amid a resurgence of Covid-19 cases. In addition, despite earlier pleas from U.S. President Joe Biden, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) said the market does not need any more crude. As a result, September-dated crude lost 70 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at $66.59.
Gold prices fell as well, thanks to anxiety surrounding the Delta variant and weaker U.S. bond yields, with the the latter falling near a two-week low. Meanwhile, new regulation in China, paired with the Afghanistan crisis, also dented the appeal of bullion, which is usually considered a safe bet during times of political and financial uncertainty. December-dated gold shed $2.00, or 0.1%, to settle at $1,787.80 an ounce today.
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