Market Week: August 29, 2022
The Markets (as of market close August 26, 2022)
Despite evidence that inflation may be slowing, the central bank is committed to fighting inflation, according to last Friday’s speech from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Wall Street may have held out hope that the Fed would scale back its aggressive bent to reel in rising prices, but that wish apparently turned to disappointment after Powell stated that “Restoring price stability will likely require maintaining a restrictive policy stance for some time.” In response, traders moved away from stocks, sending each of the benchmark indexes listed here notably lower. All 11 market sectors of the S&P 500 closed lower, with information technology, communication services, and consumer discretionary declining the furthest. Ten-year Treasury yields closed last week up 5.0 basis points. Crude oil prices rose over $3.00 but remained well below $100 per barrel. The dollar advanced, while gold prices slid lower.