By Market Pulse: S&P 500 logs first death cross in 2 years as Nasdaq Composite slumps 2% ahead of Fed’s prospective interest-rate hike
U.S. stocks finished mostly lower on Monday, with the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 index producing the firmest decline, as investors weighed the 19th day of military hostilities in Ukraine and awaited the start of a crucial gathering of the Federal Reserve, with the first rate hike in about four years expected on Wednesday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average
DJIA,
+0.00%
finished nearly bang-on flat at around 32,945, aided by a rally in American Express Corp.
AXP,
+2.90%
; the S&P 500 index
SPX,
-0.74%
closed down 0.7% at 4,173, while the Nasdaq Composite Index
COMP,
-2.04%
booked a 2% decline to end around 12,581.
The S&P 500 booked its first death cross, where the short-term moving average crosses below the long-term average, for the first time since March of 2020.
On Wednesday, the Fed is expected to raise its benchmark rate by 25 basis points for the first time since 2018 as officials look to curb out-of-control inflation, which have been exacerbated by Russia’s offensive in Ukraine.
On top of that, China put Shenzhen on locked down as it attempts to control the spread of COVID-19.
