Stocks, Oil Sell Off As Dollar Rallies On Fed Views
By Rodrigo Campos
NEW YORK Tue Mar 10, 2015 1:36pm EDT
(Reuters) - The U.S. dollar rallied across the board on Tuesday as the prospect of the first rise in U.S. interest rates in almost a decade stoked global volatility, hitting stocks and commodities.
A resetting of expectations on the likely timing of the Federal Reserve interest rate hike in nearly a decade was the main driver for Tuesday's selling in equities, analysts said.
The benchmark S&P 500 stock index fell to a one-month low, with concerns over Greece adding to the bearish mood. Technical negotiations intended to prevent Greece going bankrupt and potentially being forced to abandon the euro bloc will start in Brussels on Wednesday.
U.S. crude futures fell near $49 per barrel and Brent dropped more than 3 percent below $57, while copper lost almost 2 percent, weighed also by a continuing slide in China's producer prices. China is a major consumer of the metal.
A Reuters poll after an unexpectedly strong February U.S. jobs report Friday showed many of Wall Street's top firms were now convinced the Fed will raise rates in June.
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http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/10/us-markets-global-idUSKBN0M52HH20150310
