Stocks fell Thursday as investors grew increasingly concerned the Federal Reserve will keep raising rates despite signs of slowing inflation.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 248 points, or 0.8%, erasing its January gains. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite shed 0.8% and 1%, respectively, and were still hanging on to their monthly gains.
All of the major averages are on pace for a negative week. The Dow is down 3.5%, while the S&P and Nasdaq have each lost more than 2% on a weekly basis.
Stocks extended their slide on Thursday after initial filings for unemployment insurance fell to their lowest level since late June last week, the Labor Department reported Thursday, signaling to investors that the labor market is resilient amid a slowing economy.
“Despite all the big-tech post-pandemic layoffs, the jobs market remains hot,” said Ed Moya, senior market analyst with Oanda. “The labor market needs to break to allow the Fed to…
