Is Skepticism Looming Over the US Stocks Again?

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December 20, 2022

Betsy Miller

Stocks of firms ranging from banks to technology companies crawled lower on Monday. Major indexes are on the verge of closing December lower, which is unusual. According to Dow Jones Market Data, the S&P 500 has risen 73% of the time since 1928. Nevertheless, it dropped 6.4% in December as of Monday’s close.

Markets are under strain from several sources, according to investors. Despite recent progress in the fight against inflation, central bankers worldwide caution that they will have to maintain interest rates at higher levels for longer. Some worries are raised that consumers start feeling the sting of high borrowing costs and inflation due to their reliance on retail shopping. Questions rise about China’s recent loosening of pandemic restrictions due to the surge in COVID-19 cases.

Investors Are yet Again Doubting that The Stocks will Maintain a Rally

“There’s still so much concern overhanging markets about the never-ending Covid story, and the worries about a hard landing due to rate hikes,” Senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, Susannah Streeter said, “Even if we do get a year-end rally, it will fizzle out because those concerns are still there.”

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 162.92 points, or 0.5%, to 32757.54, while the S&P 500 dipped 34.70 points, or 0.9%, to 3817.66. The Nasdaq Composite fell 1.5% to 10546.03 points today. The S&P 500 indexes dropped sharply, with 10 of the 11 sectors ending lower.

Following the European Union’s allegation that it had antitrust breaches linked to its Marketplace service, Facebook parent Meta Platforms fell $4.95, or 4.1%, to $114.48. Walt Disney Studios’ latest film is “Avatar: The Way of Water.” After release, it underperformed in its opening weekend. The company’s stock dropped $4.30, or 4.8%, to $85.78.

International stocks are mixed. The FTSE 100 in the United Kingdom advanced by 0.4%, while the pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 increased by 0.3%. Concerns over the spread of COVID-19 prompted a 1.9% drop in Shanghai Composite. The Nikkei index in Japan fell 1.1%, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong dropped 0.5%.