US stocks and Treasuries sold off after higher-than-expected inflation in March dimmed traders’ hopes for short-term interest rate cuts.
Wall Street’s S&P 500 index closed 0.9% lower on Wednesday. All sectors saw declines, except energy, which was helped by the rebound in oil prices.
The technology-focused Nasdaq Composite fell 0.8%, with four of the Magnificent Seven tech groups falling.
Yields on two- and 10-year Treasury bonds jumped to their highest levels since mid-November following the release of inflation data. The yield on the two-year note jumped 0.24 percentage points to nearly 4.99% and close to the 5% mark most recently touched on Nov. 14.
The price of gold fell 1% from Tuesday’s record high. The yellow metal had advanced in 11 of the last 12 sessions.