Treasuries Slump Worsens Before Jobs as Oil Drops: Markets Wrap
- S&P 500 mixed as it caps eighth year of bull market run
- WTI oil falls below $50 per barrel as metals extend decline
ECB Holds Rates Steady, QE Program Unchanged
Oil’s lowest settlement since November added to concern that commodity-fueled inflation will wane. The selloff in Treasuries continued, while U.S. stocks finished little changed as European Central Bank optimism on global growth bolstered the euro.
The S&P 500 Index eked out a gain for the first time in four days, as health-care shares lifted the measure in late trading before Friday’s jobs report. Thursday marked the eighth anniversary of the bull market that’s seen the index more than triple since 2009. Real estate stocks tumbled, as the yield on 10-year Treasury notes approached 2.60 percent, a level Bill Gross suggested would usher in a bond bear market. The euro strengthened after ECB president Mario Draghi said risks to growth are more balanced. The crude selloff rippled through the junk-debt market with a gauge for the high-risk securities poised for the worst week since November.