S&P 500 Falls 0.7%, Historic 9-Week Win Streak at Risk
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- S&P 500 fell 0.7% on Wednesday, leaving the index with a modest weekly loss of 0.3% and wiping out gains that had pushed it to a fresh record high on Tuesday.
- A 10th consecutive winning week would mark the S&P 500's longest weekly streak since 1985, per Dow Jones Market Data, after nine straight weeks of gains.
- Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer at Northlight Asset Management, said first-quarter earnings — the rally's main fuel — are now 'largely in the rearview mirror,' making further gains harder without Middle East de-escalation.
- Renewed Iran war concerns weighed on markets after Kuwait briefly shut down its main airport following Iranian drone strikes that killed one person and injured dozens, testing the fragile U.S.-Iran cease-fire.
- WTI crude oil prices climbed and the 10-year Treasury yield rose to 4.489%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.2% and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.9%.
- Historically, weekly winning streaks of nine weeks or more have been followed by average gains one, three, and six months later, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
- The Bureau of Labor Statistics is set to release its May employment report on Friday, with investors watching for jobs signals amid persistent inflation worries fueled by higher oil prices.
Why it matters: With the S&P 500 down 0.3% on the week through Wednesday, a 10th straight weekly win — the longest since 1985 — now hinges on Friday's session and the May jobs report, while oil-price spikes tied to the Iran conflict test whether the rally still has earnings-fueled runway or has run out of catalysts.
