US Stocks Retreat as Data Fuels Economic Worries
The US stock market retreated on Monday as investors assessed fresh data that tempered expectations for a Federal Reserve interest rate hike, but indicated weakness in the world's top economy.
According to Fawad Razaqzada at Forex.com, the latest reports pointed to a softening labor market and easing inflation, even if it is still above target. Retail sales fell 0.6 percent on-month in July, the worst performance in more than a year, while consumer sentiment plunged as households battered by fallout from President Donald Trump's Iran war curbed spending and raised their expectations of inflation.
The data suggested that US economic momentum may be losing some steam, strengthening expectations that the Federal Reserve could leave rates unchanged in September. Traders now put the chances of a Fed hike at one in four, compared with 50:50 last week, according to Bloomberg.