The S&P 500 has officially entered its first ‘technical’ correction, or 10% fall, in close to two years as sanctions against Russia and growing uncertainty continue to bite.
After Putin sent troops over the border, the US and most major governments announced a wide range of travel, business and capital sanctions aimed at placing pressure on both Russia and its most powerful allies to reverse course.
The US stock market and currency continue to weaken, with the Nord Stream 2 pipeline a major focus and likely cause for a diversification away from Russian gas in the future.
The Dow Jones fell 1.4%, the S&P 500 1.8% and the Nasdaq 2.6%, with DIY and home improvement store Lowe’s (NYSE: LOW) the key report of note, gaining 0.3% after reporting a 30% increase in profit.
The company is benefitting from a similar theme as Bunnings in Australia, with sales growing 4.8% as locked-down consumers turned to improving their homes.
US stock market movers
Here’s how other popular US stocks fared on Wednesday.
- MercadoLibre (NASDAQ: MELI) up 3.7%
- Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) down 3.3%
- Block (NYSE: SQ) down 5.5%
- Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) down 7.0%
- Airbnb (NASDAQ: ABNB) down 9.2%
Back home on the ASX, the S&P/ASX 200 (ASX: XJO) is set to follow US stock markets lower at the open this morning. For a round-up of the latest news, check out my ASX 200 morning report.