Dollar Rally Weighs on Oil to Gold as U.S. Stocks Extend Decline
- Fed officials touting a possible April hike boost greenback
- Energy shares drive U.S. losses as crude sinks below $40
What's the Big Question Markets Are Facing?
The dollar extended its longest winning streak in a month, while U.S. stocks declined a second day as prices for crude oil, gold and emerging-market assets retreated amid mounting speculation that the Federal Reserve is moving closer to raising interest rates.
The U.S. currency extended gains into a fourth day as officials signaled the Fed stands ready to raise rates at any meeting should economic data warrant tighter monetary policy. Energy producers led the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index to its biggest drop in two weeks and drove the Russell 2000 Index down by 2 percent. The greenback’s appreciation weighed on raw materials. with the Bloomberg Commodity Index posting its worst day in two months. Emerging-market stocks snapped a five-day rally and gold sank more than 2 percent.