Stocks sink as omicron, rate worries rattle Wall Street

By DAMIAN J. TROISE and STAN CHOE
AP Business Writers

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street’s losses deepened on Tuesday after the head of the Federal Reserve said it will consider shutting off its support for financial markets sooner than expected. The S&P 500 was 1.7% lower in afternoon trading. It was already down in the morning amid worries that the omicron variant would hit the global economy. Losses accelerated after Fed Chair Jerome Powell told Congress the central bank will consider halting its bond purchases meant to lower long-term rates sooner than expected. Short-term Treasury yields rose as investors moved up expectations for a Fed rate hike. Crude oil slid.