US stocks join global selloff on rate-hike fears

New York: Wall Street stocks fell early Wednesday, joining a global stock selloff on worries about rising interest rates.

The retreat continued the trend from Tuesday, when the yield on the US 10-year Treasury hit 3.0 percent for the first time in over four years. That sparked selling in equities amid worries the US Federal Reserve will accelerate interest rate increases due to rising inflation.

About 20 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.6 percent at 23,886.95.

The broad-based S&P 500 also lost 0.6 percent to 2,619.17, as did the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index which fell to 6,968.32.

Mixed corporate earnings reports continued to factor into stock movements at the open.

Dow-member Boeing rose 1.2 percent after reporting a surge in first-quarter profits and lifting key 2018 targets amid strong demand for commercial jets and growth in its defense business.

Comcast advanced 1.2 percent after formalizing a £22 billion ($30.7 billion, 25.1 billion euros) cash bid for pan-European satellite TV group Sky. The cable giant, which owns NBC Universal, reported first-quarter earnings of $2.6 billion, down 17.5 percent from the year-ago period.

A host of other companies reported results including Twitter, which fell 3.8 percent, Goodyear Tire & Rubber, which lost 4.4 percent and Norfolk Southern, which jumped 6.0 percent.

AFP