Stocks Ended Sharply Lower as Rate-hike Fear Sparked sell-off

U.S. stocks ended sharply lower on Tuesday with the Dow sank to its lowest level in almost two months after comments from Federal Reserve officials fueled fears that the U.S. central bank would resume raising benchmark rates as early as June. The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 180.73 points, or 1.02%, to 17,529.98. The S&P 500 fell 19.45 points, or 0.94%, to 2,047.21. The Nasdaq Composite was down 59.73 points, or 1.25%, to 4,715.73.

The U.S. central bank could raise interest rates as soon as June, two Federal Reserve officials said Tuesday. Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart and San Francisco Fed President John Williams said that the decision on whether to raise rates at the June 14-15 meeting depends on the data.

Oil futures rose in electronic trading Tuesday after the American Petroleum Institute reported that U.S. crude supplies fell by 1.1 million barrels for the week ended May 13. June crude was at $48.47 a barrel in electronic trading, up from the contract’s settlement of $48.31 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The U.S. energy sector (XLE) is facing $370 billion of debt, a number that has more than doubled in the past decade. But even as oil rebounds off 13-year lows, many energy companies are struggling to stay afloat.