Stocks sink after Fed Chair Powell pleads for patience on rate cuts

“Our confidence is rising. We just want some more confidence before we take that very important step of beginning to cut interest rates,” he said in a “60 Minutes” interview with CBS that aired late Sunday.

The Dow slid 345 points, or 0.9% in early Monday trading. The S&P 500 declined 0.6% and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.7%.

Treasury yields rose as investors continued to mull over Powell’s comments.

Powell last week dashed investors’ hopes for a rate cut in March, with that optimism further waning after a shockingly strong January jobs report. Powell on Sunday doubled down on the unlikelihood of a cut next month.

Elsewhere, McDonald’s shares fell 3.5% after the fast-food chain reported mixed earnings and said that turmoil in the Middle East is hurting its business.

Boeing shares lost 1.6% after a new problem has been found during the production of 737 Max jets that will force Boeing to rework about 50 planes that have not yet been delivered.

Estee Lauder shares popped 14.1% after the cosmetics company reported a solid quarter and said it would lay off up to 5% of its employees.

Snap shares added 1.9% after the company said Monday that it is cutting 10% of its global headcount.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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