Stocks sink, yields tumble, oil prices slip: Stock market news today

US stocks sank and oil prices fell amid two key pieces of data: the JOLTS job openings survey, which showed a softening in the labor market, and factory orders data.

Checking the indexes around 12:05 PM ET, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) was down nearly 0.7% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) was down 0.78%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ( ^IXIC ) fell 0.54%

Oil prices eased, with WTI crude – the US benchmark – trading below $80 a barrel. Oil returned to its four-month trading range after OPEC+ announced it would cut output by 1.16 million barrels per day.

On the economic front, job vacancies at US employers fell to 9.93 million from 10.5 million, lower than expected. On the other hand, resignations were up and layoffs were down, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed. Separately, factory orders fell 0.3%, also lower than expected.

Bond yields moved lower after the data print. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note fell to 3.35% on Tuesday.

The S&P 500 closed up 0.4% on Monday. The biggest laggard was the Nasdaq 100, which fell 0.27%. Bond yields fell as manufacturing activity fell to the lowest level since May 2020, signaling further declines as credit conditions tighten.

Meanwhile, the President of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, James Bullard said on Monday that continued strength in the labor market gives the Fed room to fight inflation. Bullard also commented on OPEC’s decision to cut production, suggesting it could make the Fed’s job of reducing inflation more challenging as oil prices rise.

Separately, Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook also highlighted the continued tightening in the labor market.

“We’re still going to see inflation from that, but we’ve seen wage gains soften quite a bit,” she said.

However, the Federal Reserve has stuck with inflation as its primary concern, even amid the recent banking turmoil that has shown signs of easing.

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“The expected Fed rate for the next meeting was largely flat against this backdrop, edging up a modest 1.6 basis points to 4.973% with a 63% chance of pricing in a 25 basis point increase on the month next,” Jim Reid and colleagues at Deutsche. The bank wrote a note to customers.

Still, the recent banking woes caused by failures at Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank “are not over yet,” JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said Tuesday.

UNITED STATES – SEPTEMBER 22: Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, testifies during a Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee hearing titled Annual Oversight of the Nation’s Largest Banks, at the Hart Building on Thursday, September 22 2022. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

In his closely watched annual letter to shareholders, Dimon outlined the damage the financial system turmoil has done to all banks and urged lawmakers not to “overreact” with more regulations.

Elsewhere, Credit Suisse chairman Axel Lehmann apologized for the bank’s failure to save the institution after the firm had drained deposits for months.

Meanwhile, against the current backdrop, stock gains are likely to falter given recent bank failures. The oil surprise and a slowdown in growth could send stocks back to their lows seen in 2022, JPMorgan strategist Marko Kolanovic said.

In one-stock moves, shares of AMC Entertainment Holdings (AMC) fell on Tuesday after a settlement would allow AMC to convert APE preferred stock into AMC common stock.

And Disney’s feud with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis escalated. CEO Bob Iger called the governor’s retaliation “anti-business” and “anti-Florida.” Shares of Disney ( DIS ) fell on Tuesday.

Shares of Virgin Orbit Holdings, Inc. ( VORB ) sank after the company filed for bankruptcy late Monday after laying off about 85% of its staff in March.

Shares of C3.ai, Inc. ( AI ) fell about 24% on Tuesday after Kerrisdale Capital, a firm that holds a short position in AI stock, said it has sent a letter to the software maker’s auditor.

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Dani Romero is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on Twitter @daniromerotv

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