Stocks fall, putting market on track to end winning streak

The New York Stock Exchange operates during normal business hours in the Financial District, Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021, in the Manhattan borough of New York. Stocks are off to a mixed start on Wall Street, potentially putting an extended winning streak for the market in jeopardy. The S&P 500 index was little changed in the first few minutes of trading Tuesday, Nov. 9. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

Stocks moved lower in mid-afternoon trading on Wall Street on Tuesday, putting the market on track to end an extended winning streak.

The S&P 500 index fell 0.5% as of 2:50 p.m. Eastern. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 203 points, or 0.6%, to 36,229 and the Nasdaq fell 0.7%.

The benchmark S&P 500 is coming off a series of record highs and eight straight gains, tying its longest winning streak since April 2019.

Losses for a mix of technology companies and companies that rely on direct consumer spending outweighed gains elsewhere.

Bond yields fell and hurt banks, which rely on higher yields to charge more lucrative interest on loans. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 1.43% from 1.49% late Monday. Bank stocks like Citigroup, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase were all down more than 1%.

PayPal slumped more than 11% after cuttings its profit and revenue forecasts for the year. Robinhood fell 3% after the popular trading app reported a data breach the day before.

Auto companies and travel-related companies slipped. Ford fell 2% and Carnival fell 1.4%.

Tesla lost more than 11% as well and is down roughly 15% so far this week following Elon Musk's announcement that he would sell 10% of his holdings in the electric car maker based on the results of a poll he conducted on Twitter.

Sectors that are considered less risky, including household product makers and utilities, held up better than the rest of the market.

Investors received another reminder from the Labor Department that rising inflation remains persistent. The agency reported that inflation at the wholesale level rose 8.6% in October from a year earlier, matching September’s record annual gain.

A wide range of companies are facing higher costs for raw materials and energy while contending with supply chain problems. That has been cutting into their operations and prompting them to raise prices on finished goods, which in turn has been making products and services more costly for consumers.

The Labor Department will release its Consumer Price Index for October on Wednesday, giving a more detailed picture on how inflation is impacting consumers.

Inflation remains a key concern for investors, especially as the Federal Reserve moves ahead with plans to trim back, or taper, its bond purchases that have helped maintain low interest rates.

“The Fed did such a good job of telegraphing it, but there is still the mechanics of the actual tapering,” said Ross Mayfield, investment strategist at Baird.

A mix of solid earnings and corporate updates helped lift several stocks. General Electric rose nearly 3% after saying it would split into three companies. Zynga, which makes “FarmVille” and other online games, rose 8.5% after giving investors an encouraging revenue forecast.

The latest round of earnings is nearing its end, but investors still have several big corporate report cards to review. Walt Disney will report its results on Wednesday. Tapestry, the owner of Coach and other luxury brands, will report its results on Thursday.