Stocks ended mostly lower after an afternoon hiccup on Wall Street as trading remains unsettled ahead of key reports on inflation and corporate earnings. The S&P 500 fell 0.7% after wavering down, up, then back down again. The Nasdaq fell 1.1% and the Dow ended just barely in the green. The S&P 500 marked its fifth straight loss as worries grow that a recession may be looming. The International Monetary Fund, a global lending agency, further stoked those fears when it cut its forecast for global growth next year to 2.7%, down from the 2.9% it estimated in July.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP's earlier story follows below.
A late burst of selling left stocks lower on Wall Street in afternoon trading Tuesday, wiping out most of the market's gains from earlier in the day, as investors wait for updates on inflation and corporate earnings this week.
The S&P 500 was down 0.7% as of 3:38 p.m. Eastern, and on pace to extend its recent losing streak to a fifth day. The benchmark index fell as a much as 1.2% earlier after a dour forecast from the International Monetary Fund stoked recession fears. It then gained as much as 0.8% before the late-afternoon reversal.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 45 points, or 0.1%, to 29,231, and the Nasdaq was 1.2% lower.
Technology accounted for a big share of the decline among S&P 500 companies. Chipmakers continued slipping in the wake of the U.S. government's decision to tighten export controls on semiconductors and chip manufacturing equipment to China. Qualcomm fell 4.8%.
Banks and communication stocks also weighed on the market, keeping gains in health care and household goods makers in check.
Markets in Europe and Asia slipped.
Uber fell 8.2% and Lyft slumped 9.8% following a proposal by the U.S. government that could give contract workers at ride-hailing and other gig economy companies full status as employees.
U.S. crude oil prices fell 2%.
Bond yields were mixed. The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which influences mortgage rates, edged higher to 3.92% from 3.88% late Friday. The yield on the 2-year Treasury, which follows Federal Reserve action, slipped to 4.28% from 4.30%. Bond markets were closed on Monday for a holiday.
Recession fears have been weighing heavily on markets as stubbornly hot inflation burns businesses and consumers. U.S. stocks are coming off of four straight losses. Economic growth has been slowing as consumers temper spending and the central banks globally raise interest rates.
Wall Street is closely watching the Fed as it continues to aggressively raise its benchmark interest rate to make borrowing more expensive and slow economic growth. The goal is to cool inflation, but the strategy carries the risk of slowing the economy too much and pushing it into a recession.
The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday cut its forecast for global economic growth in 2023 to 2.7%, down from the 2.9% it had estimated in July. The cut comes as Europe faces a particularly high risk of a recession with energy costs soaring amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Investors have a busy week ahead of economic and corporate earnings reports that could provide a clearer picture of inflation's impact, while also raising questions about whether the Fed should continue with its aggressive rate hikes.
Investors still expect the Fed to raise its overnight rate by three-quarters of a percentage point next month. It would be the fourth such increase, which is triple the usual amount, and bring the rate up to a range of 3.75% to 4%. It started the year at virtually zero.
The Fed will release minutes from its last meeting on Wednesday, possibly giving Wall Street more insight into its views on inflation and next steps. The government will also release its report on wholesale prices, which will help provide more details on how inflation is hitting businesses.
The closely watched report on consumer prices will be released on Thursday and a report on retail sales is due Friday.
The latest round of corporate earnings will ramp up this week with reports from PepsiCo, Delta Air Lines and Domino's Pizza. Banks, including Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase, will also report results.
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Yuri Kageyama contributed to this report.