NEW YORK, July 1 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended lower on Wednesday as investors digested recent comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh for clues about the future path of interest rates.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 13.96 points, or 0.03 percent, to 52,305.24. The S&P 500 sank 16.13 points, or 0.22 percent, to 7,483.23. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 173.69 points, or 0.66 percent, to 26,040.03.
Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with communication services and financials leading the gainers by adding 2.62 percent and 2.13 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, technology and utilities led the laggards by going down 1.84 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively.
Warsh reiterated the central bank's strong commitment to bringing inflation down to its 2-percent target in his latest public remarks since assuming the role. "We've all looked around, and we've seen that prices are too high," Warsh said on a panel in Sintra, Portugal, at the European Central Bank forum on central banking.
The comments, combined with fresh economic data, heightened attention ahead of Thursday's June jobs report, which will be released a day earlier than usual due to the Fourth of July holiday.
ADP data issued on Wednesday showed private-sector hiring slowed more than expected in June, with only 98,000 jobs added. Separately, Challenger, Gray & Christmas reported that U.S. employers announced just under 46,000 job cuts last month, slightly down from a year earlier.
In corporate developments, Meta Platforms surged nearly 9 percent after Bloomberg reported that the social media giant is building a cloud business to sell artificial intelligence computing power. Bending Spoons, the Italian software company that owns AOL, Vimeo, and other legacy internet brands, saw its shares surge nearly 40 percent on its first trading day in the U.S. market.
In post-earnings trading, General Mills jumped 8.53 percent, while Nike advanced nearly 5 percent.
Investors will continue to monitor upcoming economic indicators for further insight into the strength of the U.S. economy and the Federal Reserve's policy trajectory. ■
