Stocks Drifted Lower ahead of Powell Testimony

U.S. stocks drifted lower in the early trading on Wednesday after prepared remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell suggested key interest rates would remain on hold. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately fell 58.32 points, or 0.21%, to 27,633.17. The S&P 500 was down 8.21 points, or 0.27%, to 3,083.63. The Nasdaq Composite declined 27.53 points, or 0.32%, to 8,458.56.

Oil futures lost ground Thursday. West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery fell 32 cents, or 0.6%, to $56.48 a barrel, while January Brent declined 61 cents, or 1%, to $61.45 a barrel.

The consumer price index jumped 0.4% in October, with energy accounting for more than half the increase, the government said Wednesday. The increase in the cost of living over the past 12 months edged up to 1.8% from 1.7%, but it’s still well below last year’s peak of nearly 3%.

Google will soon offer checking accounts to consumers, becoming the latest Silicon Valley heavyweight to push into finance.
The project, code-named Cache, is expected to launch next year with accounts run by Citigroup Inc (C) and a credit union at Stanford University, a tiny lender in Google’s backyard.