US stock indexes struggled for direction on Wednesday and were set for sharp monthly declines as investors worried how much the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates to tame inflation, while chipmakers slid after tepid forecasts from Seagate and HP Inc.
The three main indexes were on pace for their worst August performance since 2015, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq down 3.9% after Fed Chair Jerome Powell's blunt and hawkish remarks on Friday about keeping monetary policy tight "for some time" quashed hopes of more modest rate hikes.
Meanwhile, mixed economic data signaling an easing of price pressures and a tight labor market
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