Wall Street fell again Wednesday as stocks tumbled worldwide on worries about the economy.
The S&P 500 dropped 0.7% after House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Republicans and Democrats remain “far apart” in their efforts to prevent a potentially disastrous default on the U.S. government’s debt. The main U.S. stock index is on track for its worst week in more than two months as the once-unthinkable creeps closer to possibility.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 255 points, or 0.8%, while the Nasdaq composite lost 0.6%.
Other markets around the world fell even more as discouraging figures piled up on the economy. Stock indexes tumbled 1.7% in London, 1.9% in Frankfurt and 1.6% in Hong Kong.
Inflation in the United Kingdom remains worse than expected, raising worries that the Bank of England may keep hiking interest rates and squeezing its economy. In Germany, business confidence fell in Europe’s largest economy. And in China, worries remain about a weaker-than-hoped reopening from COVID restrictions as tensions rise with the United States over technology and security.