Indexes dip as Fed meet gets underway

NEW YORK: US stocks eased on Tuesday after the S&P 500 hit a record high earlier in the session, as a strong inflation reading for May raised caution that the Federal Reserve could taper monetary stimulus sooner than expected.

Assurance from the Fed that rising prices are transitory and falling US Treasury yields have helped ease some concerns over inflation and supported US stocks in recent weeks, with all eyes now on the central bank’s statement at the end of its two-day policy meeting on Wednesday.

The benchmark S&P 500, the blue-chip Dow Jones and the tech-stocks focused Nasdaq have gained 13.3%, 12.3% and 10%, respectively so far this year, largely driven by optimism about an economic reopening.

At 11:23 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 150.94 points, or 0.44%, at 34,242.81 and the S&P 500 was down 10.07 points, or 0.24%, at 4,245.08. The Nasdaq Composite was down 78.58 points, or 0.55%, at 14,095.56.—Reuters