Stocks dip lower on rate hike fears

The S&P 500 fell seven-tenths of a percentage point Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq also lost one point or less. The losses add to larger declines last week, when the U.S. market had its worst week since mid-June.

Why the downturn? On Friday, Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell announced plans to continue steep interest rate hikes. The Fed’s last two increases were three-quarter point hikes. Many on Wall Street expect another such bump in September. Powell said the U.S. stock and labor markets will likely take a hit when interest rates go up, but the economic pain is necessary to curb inflation.

Dig deeper: Listen to Nick Eicher and David Bahnsen discuss the latest economic news on The World and Everything in It podcast.