June S&P 500 futures (ESM23) are trending down -0.71% this morning after three major U.S. benchmark indices closed higher in a volatile trading session on Thursday as market participants weighed the future path of interest rates and digested U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s remarks on banks.
In Thursday’s trading session, regional bank stocks resumed their selloff, with First Republic Bank (FRC) tumbling -6% even after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told lawmakers she was prepared to take “additional actions if necessary” to protect deposits. Energy stocks also weighed on the broader market as the price of WTI crude dropped over -1% after U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told lawmakers that refilling the country’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve would be “difficult” this year and “may take several years.” At the same time, technology stocks outperformed as Treasury yields plunged on bets that the Fed may be nearing the end of its rate hiking cycle.
