Dow drops 323 points as data shows slowing jobs recovery
- US stocks were mixed at the close with the Dow shedding over 200 points.
- Fed vice-chair Clarida said interest rates could rise in 2023.
- Robinhood extended its rally for a second day, seeing a 126% two-day gain.
US stocks closed mixed Wednesday, with Dow dropping 0.9% as investors saw signs of a stalling labor market recovery and studied fresh comments from a Federal Reserve official.
Vice chairman of the Federal Reserve Richard Clarida said the central bank is on course to scale back its support to the economy, with a liftoff in interest rates beginning in 2023.
The "necessary conditions for raising the target range for the federal funds rate will have been met by year-end 2022," and pave the way for a raising interest rates in 2023, Clarida told a webinar held by the Peterson Institute for International Economics, as quoted by Bloomberg.
US private-sector businesses added 330,000 jobs in July, ADP said in its monthly hiring report this morning. The print fell well short of the 683,000-payrolls forecasted by economists, but still marked a seventh straight gain.
Here's where US indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. ET close on Wednesday:
- S&P 500: 4,402.66, down 0.46%
- Dow Jones industrial average: 34,792.67, down 0.92% (323.73 points)
- Nasdaq composite: 14,780.53, up 0.13%
Shares of Robinhood surged as much as 82% in Wednesday trades, extending its two-day gain to 126% as investors piled into options the first day they traded. The move higher also comes as Robinhood takes the spot as the most mentioned stock on Reddit's Wall Street Bets forum.
The Robinhood rally put its co-founders within reach of a $1.4 billion stock payout, according to the company's S-1 filing.
West Texas Intermediate crude fell 3.66% to $67.98 per barrel. Brent crude, oil's international benchmark, slid 3.02%, to $70.22 per barrel.
Gold finished the day flat near $1814 per ounce.