(Bloomberg) — Inflation concerns are rattling investors worldwide once again in the wake of Wednesday’s Federal Reserve meeting, fueling a selloff in bonds and sending most U.S. stocks down from record highs.
Ten-year Treasury yields climbed to 1.75% for the first time since January 2020, while the 30-year breached 2.5% for the first time since August 2019. The Nasdaq 100 Index, a benchmark for high-valuation stocks that are sensitive to rising yields, sank, with Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Tesla Inc. leading the declines.
The S&P 500 erased gains from Wednesday, when the closely-watched benchmark hit an all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was in the green, with JPMorgan Chase & Co. leading the financials higher amid the rise in yields. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s apparent willingness to keep pumping support into the economy and let it run hotter has spurred bets on faster growth and inflation, sending market expectations of price pressures to multi-year highs.
“There’s always the concern the Fed will make a mistake — that’s always a worry,” said Gene Goldman, chief investment officer at Cetera Financial Group. “Everything is flashing inflation, but then the Fed is saying it’s going rise a little, but then it’s going to pull back.”
The dollar held gains after initial jobless claims unexpectedly rose last week to the highest since mid-February.
Read: Treasury Yields Top 1.75% After Powell Spurs Bets on Inflation
In Asia and Europe, stocks were boosted by lingering enthusiasm from the Fed’s outlook for stronger growth. Automakers and banks, which tend to outperform during cyclical upswings, were higher in Europe. Japan’s Topix jumped past the 2,000 mark for the first time since 1991, becoming the region’s top-performing major equity index this year.
Elsewhere, oil slipped after U.S. crude stockpiles topped half a billion barrels and the International Energy Agency said global supplies are plentiful. Bitcoin traded around $58,000.
Japan’s government bond yields rose on a Nikkei report that the Bank of Japan is considering widening the trading range around the 10-year target, which could spur concerns about policy tightening.
These are some key events this week:
Bank of Japan monetary policy decision and Governor Haruhiko Kuroda briefing Friday.
These are some of the moves in markets:
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