Markets: Stocks tumble after weak US confidence data as oil gains

Markets: Stocks tumble after weak US confidence data as oil gains

New York: Stocks on global indexes fell sharply on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 down 2 per cent after a report showed US consumer confidence dropped in June amid concerns about inflation, while oil prices gained for a third day. Helping oil, Saudi Arabia and the UAE looked unlikely to be able to lift output much while Western governments agreed to look for ways to cap the price of Russian oil. The Conference Board said Tuesday US consumer confidence fell sharply in June as worries about high inflation left consumers anticipating economic growth would weaken significantly in the second half of the year. Investors have been worried that an aggressive interest rate hike cycle by the US Federal Reserve to tame inflation could tip the economy into recession. All three major indexes ended well down on Wall Street, with every S&P 500 sector losing ground aside from energy. Earlier in the session, news that China relaxed some COVID-19 quarantine rules helped lift stocks as investors hoped for a revival in global growth. “It doesn’t take much in terms of negativity to cause that profit-taking,” said Tim Ghriskey, senior portfolio strategist at Ingalls & Snyder in New York. “At some point