By Liz Moyer
Investing.com -- U.S. stocks were mixed as investors continue to worry that aggressive actions by the Federal Reserve will ignite a recession.
At 9:43 ET (13:43 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 126 points, or 0.4%, while the S&P 500 fell 0.1% and the NASDAQ Composite rose 0.5%.
Last week, the Fed signaled that interest rates could remain high through next year, longer than expected. That news sent the three stock indexes tumbling, and the Dow is approaching a bear market, which is a 20% fall from a recent peak. So far this year, the Dow is down 18%.
Overseas developments are also jolting markets here.
In the U.K., the pound touched all-time lows around $1.038 over worries about the government’s tax-cutting scheme. The pound did start to drift higher later in the morning. In Italy, voters backed a new government led by far-right politician Giorgia Meloni’s coalition. In Russia, protests spread against the government’s order to draft up to 300,000 reservists for its war in Ukraine, and people fled for the borders to escape.
Shares of casino companies jumped after China said it would resume its e-visa program for mainland visitors to Macau and permit group tours there starting in November. Wynn Resorts Limited (NASDAQ:WYNN) shares jumped 11%, MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM) rose 3.7%, and Las Vegas Sands Corp (NYSE:LVS) jumped 10.6%.
Gold rose. Crude Oil WTI Futures was up 1%, to $79.58 a barrel, while Brent Oil Futures crude rose 0.7%, to $85.68 a barrel. Gold Futures fell 0.3%, to $1651 an ounce.