Banks nosedive as Trump health care speedbump tanks stocks
Banks plunged as bond yields continued to fall, which will mean lower interest rates on loans. Transportation companies including airlines, railroads and rental car companies dropped, and so did materials companies like steel and chemicals makers. The dollar weakened. Small-company stocks, which stand to benefit the most from Trump's policy proposals of lower taxes and looser regulations, fell more than the rest of the market.
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The
The Nasdaq composite surrendered 107.70 points, or 1.8 percent, to 5,793.83. The Russell 2000 index of small-company stocks plunged 37.55 points, or 2.7 percent, to 1,346.55. Four-fifths of the stocks on the
Stocks have fallen for four days in a row, though the previous losses were small. Tuesday's losses were a reversal of the patterns that have endured since Trump was elected in November, but overall stocks are still sharply higher since then.
On Thursday the
Banks had their worst day in nine months as bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year
Among transportation companies,
The price of copper also dropped. The metal's price tends to rise when investors are more optimistic about the economy, and copper has risen 14 percent over the last year. It sank
Big-dividend companies, especially utilities, did well. Investors often buy those stocks when bond yields are falling.
"I think investors see (corporate tax reform) as more important in terms of supporting the stock market even if it's not as important in terms of its effect on the economy" as health care, she said.
Food companies fell after
Benchmark
The price of gold jumped
In other energy trading, wholesale gasoline lost
The dollar slipped to
The DAX of
AP Markets Writer
His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/marley-jay
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