US Stock Market: DJIA, S&P500, Nasdaq and Russell ended over 2.8% down on Friday

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than 900 points Friday, adding to Wall Street’s losses in April, leaving the S&P 500 with its largest monthly drop since the pandemic began.

Also Read| Trade Setup: Top 15 things to know before market opens on May 2, 2022

The market was pulled down by a steep decrease in Amazon after the internet retailing behemoth reported its first loss since 2015. The drop reduced Amazon’s market worth by more than $200 billion.

Also Read| US Stock Market: DJIA, S&P500 and Nasdaq turns red in early trade on Friday

The S&P 500 index plummeted 3.6% in April, finishing with an 8.8% loss, its biggest monthly drop since March 2020. The Dow fell 2.8%.

Also Read| US Premarket: Apple, Amazon, Intel and other stocks making biggest moves

The Nasdaq composite, heavily weighted with technology stocks, bore the brunt of the damage this month, ending April with a 13.3% loss, its biggest monthly decline since the 2008 financial crisis.

Also Read| Panama approves bill to allow use of crypto assets

Major indexes shifted between slumps and rallies throughout the week as the latest round of corporate earnings hit the market in force. Investors have been reviewing a particularly heavy batch of financial results from big tech companies, industrial firms and retailers.

Also Read| LIC IPO: List of India’s top 10 IPOs so far

But some disappointing results or outlooks from Apple, Google’s parent company and Amazon helped fuel the selling this week.

Also Read| Mukesh Ambani plans mega IPOs of Reliance Retail, Jio

Traders also continue to fret about the tough medicine the Federal Reserve is using in its fight against inflation: higher interest rates. The central bank is expected to announce another round of rate hikes next week, a move that will further increase borrowing costs across the board for people buying cars, using credit cards and taking out mortgages to buy homes.

Also Read| ED seizes Rs 5,551 crore from Xiaomi India accounts under FEMA Act

The S&P 500 fell 155.57 points to 4,131.93 Friday. The benchmark index is now down 13.3% for the year. The Dow dropped 939.18 points to 32,977.21. The Nasdaq slid 536.89 points to 12,334.64. It’s down 21.2% so far this year.

Also Read| Explained: Impact of Indonesia’s palm oil ban on India

Smaller company stocks also had a rough day. The Russell 2000 slid 53.84 points, or 2.8%, to 1,864.10.

Also Read| Why US inflation is going up and when will it come down

Big Tech has been leading the market lower all month as traders shun the high-flying sector. Tech had posted gigantic gains during the pandemic and now is starting to look overpriced, particularly with interest rates set to rise sharply as the Fed steps up its fight against inflation.

Also Read| SpaceX, Tesla and now Twitter: The many businesses of Elon Musk

Internet retail giant Amazon slumped 14%, one of the biggest decliners in the S&P 500, a day after reporting a rare quarterly loss and giving investors a disappointing revenue forecast. The weak update from Amazon comes as Wall Street worries about a potential slowdown in consumer spending along with rising inflation.

Also Read| Who is the founder of Bitcoin and why is his identity shrouded in mystery?

Bond yields rose following the hot readings on inflation. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 2.92% from 2.85%.