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NEWS
Stocks Slide Despite Inflation Positives

It was another rough day for stock market bulls, who tried to hold their ground but were kept at bay by sellers. Big tech led to the downside, while a few defensive areas of the market caught a bid. The market is awaiting its next major catalyst, with momentum remaining to the downside in the interim. 👀 

Today's issue covers stocks falling alongside inflation, Dollar General’s dire warning, a technical overview of the markets, and more from the day. 📰

Here’s the S&P 500 heatmap. 1 of 11 sectors closed green, with utilities (+0.25%) leading and consumer discretionary (-2.50%) lagging.

And here are the closing prices: 

STOCKS
Wholesale Prices Sink Alongside Stocks 📉 

February’s Producer Price Index (PPI) was flat YoY, below the 0.3% increase that economists had expected. Excluding food and energy, core PPI decreased 0.1%, marking its first negative reading since July. 😎 

The report follows yesterday’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) reading that was also cooler than anticipated, reducing inflation fears in the market and turning the attention back toward recession potential.

The reading reinforced the market’s view that the Fed will keep rates unchanged next week and share commentary that the next rate cut is likely not until the back half of 2025. Given the economic volatility, the market is relying heavily on earnings growth to help buoy stocks at their historically elevated levels. ⏸️ 

A positive sign for the job market is that initial jobless claims remain subdued. While companies’ hiring rate has slowed, they’re also not cutting workers.

With stocks still sliding, Stocktwits sentiment on the S&P 500 remains in ‘bearish’ territory. Plus, roughly half of the 17,000+ investors voting in our poll believe that we are either in a recession or heading for one. That’s what’s weighing on markets.

With concerns about the economy front and center, earnings from Dollar General are a must-read. We cover them in our next story to see how low-to-middle-income consumers are faring in this environment. 👇️ 

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