Inflation-Fueled Selloff Hits Miners and AI Stocks

U.S. stocks fell sharply on Wednesday after September inflation exceeded expectations, raising market concerns that the Federal Reserve could keep raising interest rates. Bitcoin miners and companies tied to artificial-intelligence infrastructure were among the hardest-hit shares. The S&P 500 dropped 1.11% and the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.88%, their largest daily declines since July, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.09%. Eight of the S&P 500’s 11 sectors declined, led by information technology, which lost 2.6%. The Labor Department reported that consumer prices rose 3.7% in September from a year earlier, above economists’ 3.6% expectation and the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. Higher gasoline prices contributed to the increase, while price pressures also spread beyond energy, according to the report. The inflation reading intensified concern that interest rates could rise again this month. Market-implied odds of an October increase varied with the time of measurement: some reports put the probability at 37%, while others said it briefly topped 50% on Wednesday before retreating. The figures reflect snapshots at different times, not a single fixed probability.