Wall Street closed sharply lower on Wednesday as the gains made by Republicans in the midterm Congressional election looked more modest than some expected.
Investors focused on upcoming inflation data, which will provide clues as to the magnitude of the rise in interest rates in the future.
Losses in major indices were compounded by a further rise in Treasury yields following a weak 10-year US Treasury auction.
Wall Street’s decline on Wednesday ended three consecutive winning days, during which the Standard & Poor’s 500 index gained about 3%.
With the election outcome still uncertain, investors turned their attention to October inflation data coming Thursday, which could shed light on whether the Federal Reserve may soften its hawkish stance on rising interest rates. .
According to preliminary data, the Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 78.91 points, or 2.06%, to close at 3749.20 points, and the Nasdaq Composite index lost 263.02 points, or 2, 46 percent, at 10354.54 points.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 644.15 points, or 1.94 percent, to 32,516.68.
