Wall Street Sinks as Bond Yields Rise and Walmart Disappoints

Wall Street indexes closed lower on Thursday, August 20, as rising Treasury yields dampened risk appetite. The S&P 500 fell 65.29 points, or 0.85%, to end at 7,642.69 points, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 263.28 points, or 1.00%, to 26,067.81. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 681.62 points, or 1.27%, to 52,781.43.

The decline was driven by disappointing quarterly results from retail bellwether Walmart, which missed Wall Street expectations for comparable sales due to rising gasoline prices. The report dragged down the S&P 500 consumer staples index and consumer discretionary sector, with megacaps Amazon and Tesla among its biggest index-point weights.

Rallying oil prices also contributed to inflation worries, with U.S. crude oil increasing above $87 for the fifth consecutive session. Mona Mahajan, head of investment strategy at Edward Jones, noted that investors were already anxious after recent weaker-than-expected retail sales and labor market data for July.