S&P 500 Index drops toward 3,100 on political jitters
- S&P 500 falls sharply as investors react to Supreme Court ruling.
- Markets turn risk-averse, CBOE Volatility Index rises more than 11%.
After starting the day in a quiet manner, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) came under strong bearish pressure amid heightened political tensions in the United States. As of writing, the SPX was down 1.45% on a daily basis at 3,125 points. Reflecting the intense risk-aversion, the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), Wall Street's fear gauge, is up 11.1% on the day at 31.15.
New York prosecutor to obtain Trump's financial records
The US Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that the Democratic-led House of Representatives could not obtain President Donald Trump's financial records. However, in a separate ruling, the Supreme Court said that a New York prosecutor was allowed to obtain those records.
Commenting on this development, "this is a tremendous victory for our nation's system of justice and its founding principle that no one – not even a president – is above the law," said Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance, Jr. "Our investigation, which was delayed for almost a year by this lawsuit, will resume, guided as always by the grand jury’s solemn obligation to follow the law and the facts, wherever they may lead."
Meanwhile, President Trump argued that this decision was a political prosecution. "I won the Mueller witch hunt and others and now I have to keep fighting in a politically corrupt New York. Not fair to this Presidency or Administration," Trump tweeted out.
Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, the Energy Index and the Financials Index are losing 4% and 2.6%, respectively, as the biggest decliners.