Tech stocks plummet as surging Treasury yields rock market

Tech stocks plummet as surging Treasury yields rock market

The value rotation continued on Wednesday as rising Treasury yields cut into bullishness around growth stocks.

Tech giants and other momentum names tumbled after ADP's monthly employment report showed February job growth missing expectations. The US added 117,000 private payrolls last month, the report said. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had anticipated a 200,000-payroll gain.

The reading signals that the labor market is returning to growth after a nearly stagnant winter, but the weaker-than-expected data highlights how difficult it will be for the economy to recoup millions of lost jobs.

Treasury yields swung higher soon after the report's release. The move revived concerns of overstretched stock valuations, leading tech stocks to drive the bulk of the market slump. The 10-year Treasury again flirted with a key 1.5% level that it touched last week for the first time in over a year. 

Here's where US indexes stood at the 4 p.m. ET close on Wednesday:

Energy and financial names outperformed through the session. Utilities and consumer discretionary stocks joined the tech sector in leading indexes' declines. 

The broad decline followed weakness in Tuesday's session. Similar valuation concerns dragged on growth stocks, though moves in the Treasury market weren't as pronounced. The Nasdaq composite sank more than its peers,