Wall Street gave investors a reason to hit the snooze button on Thursday as the U.S. stock market posted its worst performance in three weeks, driven by rising oil prices, lingering inflation worries, and the growing burden of the national debt.
The S&P 500 lost 0.9%, extending a five-day losing streak that followed last week’s record high close. The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 703 points, or 1.3%, while the Nasdaq composite slipped 1%.
For folks watching the ticker back here in Northwest Arkansas, the slide is worth a second look—not just for the numbers, but because it’s our hometown titan leading the way down.
Walmart Inc. shares dropped at the open and kept falling, acting as an anchor for the broader market. Investors are looking ahead to the company’s upcoming profit reports with a mix of caution and calculation. When retail’s biggest player stumbles, it usually signals something bigger about how everyday folks are walking through the doors at Bentonville headquarters versus how they’re spending their disposable income at the Walmart Supercenter down the street.
“That helps knock the U.S. stock market to its worst day in three weeks, and Walmart led the way on concerns about its upcoming profits,” noted the Associated Press in a report on the market action.
The vibe on Wall Street shifted abruptly from relief to reality on Thursday. On Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made a surprise move that seemed to cool things off for a moment—his department announced it would at least double the size of its planned purchases of longer-term U.S. Treasurys from Sept. 9 through Nov. 4. That strategy, intended to push down borrowing costs, worked in short bursts earlier in the week.
But the bond market lost its grip, and stock investors didn’t end up keeping that afternoon peace.
Yields on the 10-year Treasury charged higher through the
Source: NWA Democrat Gazette
