Stocks drop, extending losing streak

S&P 500 declines for 6 straight weeks as inflation rattles market

NEW YORK — Stocks closed a wobbly day of trading mostly lower on Wall Street Monday, extending a losing streak for markets.

The broader market is in the midst of a slump as investors try to gauge how companies and consumers are dealing with higher prices and whether central banks can help ease the problem. Major indexes have been slipping since early April.

“Time is the most important factor here,” said Mark Hackett, chief of investment research at Nationwide. “Right now sentiment and emotion is winning but eventually the reality of a fundamentally good backdrop will take over.”

Corporate earnings have been mostly good, he said, and consumer spending is holding up in the face of inflation pressure. But, the market will likely remain volatile and could experience more losses until some of the worries over inflation lessen.

The S&P 500 fell 15.88 points, or 0.4 percent, to 4,008.01. The benchmark index is coming off a six-week losing streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average eked out a gain, rising 26.76 points, or 0.1 percent, to 32,223.42.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq had a sharp drop. It fell 142.21 points, or 1.2 percent, to 11,662.79.

Technology stocks were among the biggest losers after pushing and pulling the market throughout the day. Apple fell 1.1 percent.

Retailers also had some of the biggest losses. Amazon slipped 2 percent and Starbucks fell 4.2 percent.

Energy stocks and health care companies gained ground. Chevron rose

3.1 percent and Eli Lilly rose 2.7 percent.

Bond yields fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 2.89 percent from

2.94 percent late Friday.

Spirit Airlines rose

13.5 percent after Jet

Blue said it would make a hostile offer for the budget carrier after Spirit rebuffed its earlier bids.

The Federal Reserve is in the process of pulling its benchmark short-term interest rate off its record low near zero, where it spent most of the pandemic. It also said it may continue to raise rates by double the usual amount at upcoming meetings. Investors are concerned that the central bank could cause a recession if it raises rates too high or too quickly.

U.S. crude oil prices rose 3.4 percent Monday and are up more than 50 percent for the year. Natural gas prices rose 3.8 percent and have more than doubled in 2022.