Big names lead declines in Wall Street
Wall Street ended lower after a choppy session on Tuesday, with heavy hitters Microsoft and Visa losing 1.1 percent and 2.4 percent respectively, weighing on the S&P 500.  Financial markets have been roiled in recent months by the Ukraine war, soaring inflation and tightening financial conditions. US job openings in June fell by the most in just over two years, as demand for workers eased in the retail and wholesale trade industries. Overall the labour market remained tight. Since the US Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 75 basis points in July, investors have been speculating about whether the central bank's largest hikes are behind it. "The market has to get really comfortable that they have fully baked in all the Fed's rate hikes, and I think that remains an open question," said Rob Haworth, senior investment strategist at US Bank Wealth Management in Seattle. "The challenges and supply constraints aren't necessarily done. They aren't done and gone yet." The S&P 500 declined 0.66 percent to end the session at 4,091 points. The Nasdaq declined 0.16 percent to 12,349 points, while Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 1.23 percent to 32,396 points. A largely upbeat second-quarter reporting season has supported markets recently, with the benchmark S&P 500 index up about 12 percent from lows hit in mid-June. Uber Technologies jumped almost 19 percent after the ride-hailing firm reported positive quarterly cash flow for the first time ever and forecast upbeat third-quarter operating profit. Industrial bellwether Caterpillar tumbled 5.8 percent after warning of a bigger drop in demand for its excavators in China, piling more pain on the industrial bellwether grappling with supply-chain disruptions. (Reuters)