Slip on the growing economic worries ahead; Tech stocks will fall

Oct 11 (Reuters) – U.S. stock indexes fell on Tuesday, with technology stocks leading the sell-off as the economic outlook darkened as a worrisome rate hike, an escalating Russia-Ukraine war and China stepped up its COVID-19 measures.

Markets struggled to sustain a brief rally earlier last week as recent data suggested further policy tightening by the US Federal Reserve could lead to a slowdown in the economy.

Most rate-sensitive growth stocks such as Microsoft Corp ( MSFT.O ), Twitter Inc, Amazon.com ( AMZN.O ), Apple Inc ( AAPL.O ) and Tesla Inc ( TSLA.O ) fell between 0.7% and 0.7%. 1.3% in pre-market transactions.

The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note rose on Tuesday, hitting a one-day high of 4.006%.

With the latest economic indicators pointing to sustained inflation going forward, financial markets are betting on a 92% chance of another 75-basis-point hike at the Fed’s meeting in November.

Thursday’s consumer price report will provide some clarity on inflation, with minutes from the Fed’s September meeting expected later in the week.

Belarus said on Tuesday that its army had mobilized as a defense against Russian troops on its border, escalating the escalating war. Read more

Shanghai and other large Chinese cities have ramped up testing for COVID-19, prompting some local authorities to quickly close schools, entertainment venues and tourist spots as infections surge. Read more

The CBOE Volatility Index (.VIX), also known as Wall Street’s gauge of fear, rose to 33.57 points, for the fourth straight session and near a two-week high.

At 6:09 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 269 points, or 0.92%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 36.75 points, or 1.01%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 111.75 points, or 1.02%.

Reporting by Ankika Biswas; Edited by Anil D’Silva

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