Stock Ened Lower on Geopolitical Risks, Interest Rate Worries

U.S. stocks ended lower on Wednesday, as investor concerns about geopolitical risks and minutes from the latest Federal Reserve meeting sparked worries about a more hawkish view on interest rate increases. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 218.55 points, or 0.90%, to 24,189.45. The S&P 500 lost 14.68 points, or 0.55%, to 2,642.19. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 25.27 points, or 0.36%, to 7,069.03.

Oil futures on Wednesday marked their highest finish since late 2014, as rising tensions in the Middle East continued to feed concerns over potential supply disruptions in the region. May West Texas Intermediate crude rose $1.31, or 2%, to settle at $66.82 a barrel. June Brent crude added $1.02, or 1.4%, to $72.06 a barrel.

All of the Federal Reserve’s policymakers felt that the U.S. economy would firm further and that inflation would rise in the coming months, minutes of the central bank’s last policy meeting on March 20-21 released on Wednesday showed.