- US stocks snapped a four-day win streak on Wednesday as optimism around talks between Russia and Ukraine faded.
- Russia said it has yet to see any breakthrough in its talks with Ukraine, and that a lot of work still remains.
- Commodity prices rebounded, adding to ongoing concerns of persistent inflation.
US stocks fell on Wednesday, snapping a four-day win streak as investor optimism surrounding ongoing peace talks between Russia and Ukraine faded.
Stocks had surged on Tuesday after Russia said it would pull back its troops from Kyiv and seek to continue talks with Ukraine, but some believe the move by Russia is simply a strategy to concentrate its military focus on eastern regions from Ukraine.
"As nice as the peace talks initially sound, there's skepticism over Russia's true intentions," Matt Simpson, senior market analyst at City Index, said. "They haven't been true to their word with humanitarian corridors, and it's possible their pledge to scale down their 'military operations' around Kyiv is simply a ploy to disperse their troops elsewhere."
Ongoing talks between the two countries continue to have an impact on commodities, as oil prices jumped on Wednesday following Russia's downbeat assessment of ongoing talks.
Here's where US indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. ET close on Wednesday:
- S&P 500: 4,602.46, down 0.63%
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: 35,228.81, down 0.19% (65.38 points)
- Nasdaq Composite: 14,442.27, down 1.21%
The CEO of Restoration Hardware warned analysts during its earnings call that uncertainty surrounding the current economic environment is as high as it was in 2008. The CEO referenced the film The Big Short and quipped that only market veterans like Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger have experienced such a market environment with surging inflation and higher interest rates.
Investors are also keenly focused on the move in interest rates, as the 10-year and 2-year treasury yield curve briefly inverted on Tuesday before turning positive. An inversion means that short-term interest rates are higher than longer-term interest rates, and it has been a reliable indicator that the economy is on the verge of a recession. But Fundstrat's Tom Lee still thinks stocks can rise despite the recent inversion.
The week-long rally in stocks has helped revitalize meme-stocks like AMC Entertainment and GameStop, with both doubling over the past two weeks. But billionaire bond king Bill Gross likened meme-stocks to lottery tickets and said there's no real value behind them.
Alibaba is gaining exposure to the metaverse via a $60 million funding round into AR glasses maker Nreal. The Chinese e-commerce giant has already registered several trademarks, including Ali Metaverse.
Uber said the ride-hailing company is not yet ready to accept cryptocurrencies as a form of payment for its services, as they still need to become more efficient. "It's demonstrated to be a real store of value, but it has not yet demonstrated its utility in terms of efficient exchange of value," CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said.
Victims of a massive $600 million crypto hack will be reimbursed, according to the owner of Axie Infinity. The crypto hack came to light on Tuesday and occurred last week on a blockchain that powers a popular crypto video game.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose as much as much as 3.56% to $107.95 per barrel. Brent crude, oil's international benchmark, jumped as much as 3.39% to $113.97.
Bitcoin fell 1.04% to $46,977. Ether prices rose 0.02% to $3,385.
Gold rose as much as 1.39% to $1,938.70 per ounce. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell five basis points to 2.35%.