S&P 500 posts fifth losing day ahead of Powell speech, Dow drops 150 points

Stocks fell broadly on Thursday, with the S&P 500 sliding for a fifth day in a row, as traders look to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech on Friday.

The broad-market index shed 0.4% and closed at 6,370.17, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 0.34% and settled at 21,100.31. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 152.81 points, or 0.34%, ending at 44,785.50.

Investors are looking to hear from Powell at the central bank’s annual economic symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyo., where he could offer insights into the path of interest rates that could offer some reprieve about persistent inflation concerns. 

Fed funds futures are pricing in a nearly 74% likelihood of the central bank cutting rates at its next policy gathering in September, according to CME’s FedWatch tool.

Minutes from Fed’s July meeting showed policymakers are worried about the state of the labor market and inflation, though most agreed that it was too soon to lower interest rates. Fed governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman dissented against holding rates steady, marking the first time two board members have done so since 1993.