Winter weather also played a role in pulling down transportation stocks as blizzard conditions on the East Coast stifle economic activity.
Let's look at the numbers from Tuesday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:
Dow Jones: 20,837.37; -44.11; -0.21%
S&P 500: 2,365.45; -8.02; -0.34%
Nasdaq: 5,856.82; -18.97; -0.32%
Now, here's a look at today's most important market events and stocks, plus a preview of Wednesday's economic calendar.
The Dow fell 44 points as the markets prepare for tomorrow's announcement by the Federal Reserve on whether the central bank will raise interest rates in March.
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The expectation is that the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates tomorrow afternoon at the conclusion of the meeting. The Fed's plans on monetary policy have some investors asking a very perilous question: "Will the stock market crash after the FOMC meeting?" We break down the ramifications of another interest rate hike this week and if it could cause the next stock market crash. Here's what you need to know.
Airline stocks were under pressure - including United Continental Holdings Inc. (NYSE: UAL) and American Airlines Group Inc. (Nasdaq: AAL) - due to paralyzing winter weather on the East Coast. Thousands of flights have been delayed due to blizzard conditions.
Crude oil prices were slumping for the seventh consecutive session after OPEC released a bearish report on the near-term future for oil. OPEC reported an uptick in global inventory levels. The news coincides with a report this afternoon from the American Petroleum Institute. Analysts are expecting another build in crude inventories in the United States.
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The WTI crude oil price today fell 1.1%, while Brent crude dipped 0.4%.
Shares of Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) fell more than 0.5% after the New York attorney general accused the company of withholding documents related to the impact of fossil fuels on climate change from the public and its investors. Shares of Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) fell more than 1%.
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But the big story was Snap Inc. (NYSE: SNAP).
The parent company of Snapchat was reeling Tuesday after eMarketer announced that it expects the company's ad revenue to come in well short of previous expectations. Shares fell more than 3%.
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About the Author
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.