US stocks slip as investors brace for Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech

• US stocks traded lower Tuesday, with Fed Chair Jerome Powell scheduled to speak at 12:40 p.m. ET in Washington, DC.
• Markets rallied last week after the Fed’s 25-basis-point rate hike and Powell’s upbeat comments on the economy.
• Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said Tuesday the tight labor market shows the central bank has more to do to bring inflation back under control.

US stocks moved lower Tuesday ahead of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s speech at the Economic Club of Washington at 12:40 pm ET.

After Powell’s disinflation comment following the Fed’s 25-basis-point rate hike last week, markets rallied. Investors interpreted the press conference as more dovish, and on Tuesday they will be watching for insight into upcoming monetary policy.

But Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said early Tuesday that the tight labor market shows the central bank has more to do to bring inflation back under control and sees the fed funds rate going higher than the consensus.

“We need to raise rates aggressively to put a ceiling on inflation, then let monetary policy work its way through the economy,” Kashkari told CNBC.

Here’s where US indexes stood as the market opened 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday:

• S&P 500: 4,101.03, down 0.24%

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 33,745.88, down 0.43% (145.14 points)

• Nasdaq Composite: 11,885.72, down 0.01%

Here’s what else is going on:

• US recession odds have dropped to 25% thanks to a surge in jobs, according to Goldman Sachs.
• The Iranian armada of “ghost” ships carrying Russian oil is growing.
• Baidu stock jumped 15% after the Chinese internet giant said it’s preparing an answer to ChatGPT.
• President Joe Biden will call for a tax on corporate stock buybacks and a 20% minimum tax for billionaires in his State of the Union speech.
• Adani said it will repay over $1 billion in debt ahead of schedule in a bid to halt stock-market rout.
• Bed Bath & Beyond surged 120% before plunging after the retailer announced a $1 billion fundraising deal to avoid bankruptcy.

In commodities, bonds, and crypto:

• Oil prices climbed, with West Texas Intermediate up 1.92% to $75.54 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 1.61% to $82.27 a barrel.
• Gold edged 0.16% higher to $1,882.50 per ounce.
• The 10-year yield ticked up 2 basis points to 3.657%.
• Bitcoin moved higher 0.15% to $22,981.95.