US stocks: Wall Street ends down as traders see no rate cuts before 2027

Published Fri, Mar 20, 2026 · 05:42 AM

WALL Street ended lower on Thursday, with declines in Micron Technology and Tesla, as worries about inflation stemming from soaring oil prices left investors pessimistic about the potential for future interest rate cuts.

Investors focused on warnings by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday that the economic outlook remains uncertain amid a US-Israeli war with Iran that has sent energy prices soaring and created fears of inflation. The Fed left rates unchanged, as expected.

Interest rate futures suggest traders see little chance of interest rate cuts before mid-2027, according to the CME’s FedWatch tool.

Echoing the Fed, the Bank of England and European Central Bank held their interest rates steady and pointed to uncertainty arising from the Middle East conflict.

‘A real inflation risk’

“The market is digesting a little bit more of Powell and what some other central banks said overnight, that this is a real inflation risk,” said Mike Dickson, head of research and quantitative strategies at Horizon Investments in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Brent crude was up but well off session highs of US$119 a barrel after Iran attacked energy targets overnight in the Middle East, leading the US government to take steps to expand supply.

Micron Technology dropped 3.8 per cent after the memory chipmaker’s quarterly forecast failed to impress investors who have sent its shares soaring over 50 per cent this year on strong demand related to AI.

Nvidia, the world’s most valuable company, lost 1 per cent. Tesla slid 3.2 per cent. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration escalated its probe into 3.2 million Tesla vehicles with Full Self-Driving driver-assistance on concerns the system may fail to detect or warn drivers in poor visibility.

The S&P 500 declined 0.27 per cent to end the session at 6,606.49 points.

The Nasdaq declined 0.28 per cent to 22,090.69 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.44 per cent to 46,021.43 points.

Eight of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes declined, led lower by materials, down 1.55 per cent, followed by a 0.87 per cent loss in consumer discretionary.

The S&P 500, Nasdaq and Dow were below their 200-day moving averages, underscoring a loss of momentum in the market.

The S&P 500 has lost over 3 per cent in 2026 and is trading at four-month lows.

Prices of precious metals declined, with miners Newmont and Freeport-McMoRan down 6.9 per cent and 3.3 per cent, respectively. Data on Thursday showed weekly jobless claims unexpectedly fell last week, pointing to stable labour-market conditions and a rebound in job growth in March.

Declining stocks outnumbered rising ones within the S&P 500 by a 1.4-to-one ratio.

The S&P 500 posted 17 new highs and 26 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 30 new highs and 276 new lows.

Volume on US exchanges was 20 billion shares traded, about average with the 20 most recent sessions. REUTERS