Cisco Drives Dow's Decline as Market Awaits Fed Decision

The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded near 53,700 on Thursday, down about 75 points and one-tenth of a percent from Wednesday's close. The index's decline was largely driven by Cisco (CSCO), which fell around 9% after reporting disappointing quarterly results on margins rather than revenue. As a result, the price-weighted Dow Jones Average saw nearly its entire decline come from this single stock.

This is significant because the Dow Jones Industrial Average is calculated based on share prices, with each member company's contribution to the index based on its current market value. This means that Cisco's sharp decline had a disproportionate impact on the overall index.

Despite the Dow's decline, futures markets still show a 68.3% chance of at least one interest rate hike by December 9. However, this is down from a near-certainty just three days ago, highlighting the market's increasing uncertainty about future Fed actions.