Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (-0.8%), Nasdaq Composite (-1.1%), and DJIA (-0.9%) now all sit in negative week-to-date territory. 

The final reading of the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment for March fell to 53.3 (Briefing.com consensus: 55.5) from the preliminary reading of 55.5. The final reading for February was 56.6. In the same period a year ago, the index stood at 57.0.

The key takeaway from the report is that it conveyed large drops in sentiment among consumers with middle and higher incomes, who were dealing with rising gas prices and falling stock prices in the wake of the Iran war.