U.S. stocks were mixed Tuesday as high energy prices, stubborn inflation and tightening monetary policy continued to contain bullish sentiment.
Price action was choppy, with equities swinging between gains and losses in the early hours of the session.
What’s driving markets
Lingering concerns about the economic fallout from a European energy crisis and the Federal Reserve’s determination to damp multidecade high inflation were seen putting equities under renewed pressure. Treasury yields jumped, seeing rate-sensitive growth stocks sliding.
“Equities endured a renewed spell of weakness over the past two weeks, driven by the perception of a further hawkish tilt in Fed intentions,” said Mislav Matejka, equity strategist at JP Morgan.
The Institute for Supply Management said its services index rose to 56.9% in August from 56.7% in the prior month — the highest level since April. Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal had expected the index to drop to 55.5%