Stocks fall as choppy trading continues on Wall Street

Stocks fell broadly on Wall Street Wednesday, erasing most of their gains for the week, as investors were discouraged to see more evidence of inflation’s impact on businesses and another gloomy outlook on the global economy.

The losses follow several bumpy days for markets, with major indexes often lurching between gains and losses by the hour. The volatility persists as investors try to determine how rising interest rates and inflation will impact the economy.

The S&P 500 index fell 44.91 points, or 1.1%, to 4,115.77. The benchmark index managed to hold on to a slight gain for the week. It has notched losses for eight of the last nine weeks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 269.24 points, or 0.8%, to 32,910.90 and the Nasdaq fell 88.96 points, or 0.7%, to 12,086.27.

Banks and industrial companies were among the biggest weights on the broader market. Wells Fargo fell 1.8% and Union Pacific shed 3.1%.

Some technology stocks also fell. Intel lost 5.3%.

Smaller company stocks fell more than the rest of the market. The Russell 2000 fell 28.56 points, or 1.5%, to 1,891.01.

Bond yields rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which banks use to set rates on mortgages and other loans, rose to 3.02% from 2.97% late Tuesday.

The big concerns on Wall Street remain rising inflation and whether the Federal Reserve’s shift to aggressively raise interest rates will help temper the impact or possibly push the economy into a recession.

“What investors need to realize is it’s going to be a long time until inflation numbers look good,” said Brian Levitt, global market strategist at Invesco. “What they need to focus on is whether it gets better or worse related to expectations.”

Inflation continues to sting businesses. Lawn care products company Scotts Miracle-Gro slumped 8.9% after slashing its profit forecast for the year because retailers aren’t replenishing orders as expected.

Retailers have been warning that inflation is crimping sales as consumers shift to either spending on services or focusing on necessities rather than purchasing otherwise discretionary items, like electronics.

Wall Street is closely watching economic data for signals that could prompt the Fed to potentially ease up on the size of its rate increases. The next big update on inflation arrives Friday, when the U.S. government releases its latest reading on the consumer price index.