US: S&P 500 falls below 3,900 on global slowdown fears

THE benchmark S&P 500 fell below the 3,900 mark at the open on Friday (Sep16), breaching a level that traders considered as a key support, after a profit warning from delivery firm FedEx spooked investors already concerned about aggressive rate hikes.

The benchmark index is now 5.8 per cent above its mid-June closing low as a summer rally in Wall Street continues to unravel amid fears of steep increases in US interest rates and deterioration in earnings growth.

Wall Street’s main indexes were trading at two-month lows, with the S&P 500 down 20.40 points, or 0.52 per cent, at 3,880.95.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 95.21 points, or 0.31 per cent, at the open to 30,866.61, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 151.15 points, or 1.31 per cent, to 11,401.21 at the opening bell. REUTERS