US Stocks Stall as Hot PPI Data Dampens Rate-Cut Euphoria

Wall Street's rally hit a snag as July's Producer Price Index surged unexpectedly, cooling bets on aggressive Federal Reserve easing. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped marginally while the S&P 500 eked out a third consecutive record close. Tech stocks narrowly missed new highs as the Nasdaq Composite hovered below its peak.

Producer prices jumped 0.9% month-over-month - quadruple consensus estimates - marking the sharpest annual gain since February at 3.3%. Core PPI inflation accelerated to three-year highs, rattling markets that had priced in near-certain September rate cuts following Wednesday's benign CPI print.

The inflation surprise evaporated wagers on a 50-basis-point cut, with nearly 10% of traders now anticipating policy unchanged. This tempered the week's risk-asset surge, though majority expectations still favor modest easing. Cryptocurrencies remain sensitive to shifting liquidity expectations as traditional and digital markets reassess the Fed's path.