NEW YORK: The stock market ended lower Wednesday as traders looked ahead to a critical Federal Reserve meeting next week.
Without any major economic news, traders grappled with the question hanging over financial markets: When will the Fed and other central banks pull back their economic stimulus programs?
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 126 points, or 0.8 percent, to 14,995. The Dow had its first three-day loss of the year and its second close below 15,000 in the past month.
“There’s nothing concrete out there to turn us around today,” said Russell Croft, co-portfolio manager at the Croft Value Fund in Baltimore. “So naturally enough, people are back to thinking about the Fed.”
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 13 points, or 0.8 percent, to 1,612. All 10 industry groups in the index dropped, led by consumer-discretionary and utility companies.
The Nasdaq composite sank 36.52 points, or 1 percent, to 3,400.43.
Two of the top-performing stocks in the S&P 500 this year, Netflix and BestBuy, led consumer companies down. Netflix lost $6.82, or 3 percent, to $207.64. BestBuy dropped $1.01, or 4 percent, to $26.88. GameStop fell $1.13, or 3 percent, to $36.69.
The S&P 500 has lost 3.4 percent since a record high May 21.