Tech shares slip amid inquiry

Most U.S. stocks fell, with FANG shares tumbling as executives of the tech heavyweights faced scrutiny on Capitol Hill. The selloff in emerging market assets deepened, adding to the risk-off tone on global financial markets.

Twitter, Facebook and Alphabet helped send the Nasdaq Composite Index down 1.2 percent, the most in three weeks, during Congressional hearing on social media and foreign influences on elections. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished in the green. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index sunk to its lowest since April. An emerging-market currency gauge fell to a fresh one-year low, led for a second day by South Africa’s rand, before paring losses.

“Trade is looking worse, emerging markets are looking worse, but you’d think FANGs are pretty insulated from some of those negatives,” said Mike Bailey, director of research at FBB Capital Partners in Bethesda, Md. “Just the visual of seeing folks hauled in front of Congress is probably not helping the bigcap tech names.”

The pound rallied after the British and German governments were said to have abandoned key Brexit demands to potentially ease the path for the U.K. to strike a deal with the European Union. Sterling pared the gain after Reuters reported that the German government said its position is unchanged.

“The more ‘positive’ or ‘friendly’ Brexit headlines we get, the harder it’ll be for pound bears to ignore,” said Viraj Patel, an ING Groep NV currency strategist.