Investing.com - The Dow closed lower Thursday as investors shunned riskier assets, even as weaker inflation reined in high-flying bond yields.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell about 2.13%. The S&P 500 fell 2.06%, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.25%.
Financials, mostly banks, fell victim to heavy selling ahead of their earnings slated for Friday. Bond yields fell sharply amid a slowdown in inflation. Falling government bond yields stifle banks' ability to generate net interest income.
JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), Citigroup (NYSE:C) and Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC), all of which report Friday, closed lower, dragging the broader market to a second-straight day of heavy selling.
The 10-year Treasury note yield fell more than 2% after the Labor Department said its consumer price index rose 0.1% last month and 2.3% for the year through September. That was below economists' forecasts for a 2.4% rise.
A plunge in energy stocks, meanwhile, also contributed to the carnage on Wall Street after oil prices fell 3% following a much-larger-than-expected build in U.S. oil inventories.
Corporate earnings season failed to shift investor focus, despite Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) reporting third-quarter earnings that beat expectations. It's stock closed 3.5% higher.
Some beaten-up techs, however, bucked the trend lower as Snap (NYSE:SNAP) and Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) ended the day higher.
Snapchat rose 3% after Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) reportedly said it still sees a potential for the company to deliver a "Twitter-like turnaround," though the investment bank did cut its price target on the stock to $11 from $17. Facebook rose 1%.
In economic news, weaker labor market data gave investors little reason to return to risk assets as jobless claims rose more than expected.
The recent rout on Wall Street has drawn comments from President Donald Trump, who suggested late Wednesday the Federal Reserve was to blame for the weakness as the central bank "has gone crazy" with its approach to monetary policy tightening.
"I think the Fed is making a mistake. It’s so tight, I think the Fed has gone crazy," Trump said late Wednesday.
Top S&P 500 Gainers and Losers Today:
Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM), L Brands (NYSE:LB) and Freeport-McMoran (NYSE:FCX) the top S&P 500 gainers for the session.
Fluor (NYSE:FLR), CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) and Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) were among the worst S&P 500 performers of the session.