Stocks ended lower Tuesday, losing ground in afternoon trade as investors appeared reluctant to hold equities ahead of the release of an eagerly anticipated June consumer price index reading. The CPI is expected to show a large 1.1% jump in June when the report is released at 8:30 a.m. ET Wednesday. The increase in inflation over the past year, meanwhile, is forecast to climb to 8.8% from 8.6%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended around 189 points lower, down 0.6%, near 30,985, according to preliminary figures. The S&P 500 fell 0.9% to close near 3,819, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.9% to close near 11,265.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.