US markets end sharply lower on Friday

16 Nov 2024 Evaluate

The US markets ended sharply lower on Friday amid concerns about the outlook for interest rates following Federal Reserve Chair Powell's remarks on Thursday suggesting the central bank doesn't need to hurry to lower rates. Citing the strength of the U.S. economy, Powell said the Fed can take a careful approach to future monetary policy decisions. The Fed is still seen as likely to lower interest rates next month, but CME Group's FedWatch Tool suggests the chances of a quarter point rate cut have fallen to 58.4 percent from 72.2 percent on Thursday.

Potentially adding to concerns economic strength will lead the Fed to hold off on future rate cuts, the Commerce Department released a report showing retail sales increased by slightly more than expected in October. The Commerce Department said retail sales rose by 0.4 percent in October after growing by an upwardly revised 0.8 percent in September. Street had expected retail sales to climb by 0.3 percent compared to the 0.4 percent increase originally reported for the previous month.

The Labor Department also released a report showing unexpected increases by import and export prices in the month of October, which may have added to recent worries about sticky inflation. Meanwhile, the Fed released a report showing industrial production decreased in October, as the effects of recent hurricanes and the since-resolved strike at Boeing (BA) continued to weigh on growth.

Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 305.87 points or 0.7 percent to 43,444.99, Nasdaq fell 427.53 points or 2.24 percent to 18,680.12 and S&P 500 was down by 78.55 points or 1.32 percent to 5,870.62.