Gold, bitcoin and stocks hit record highs this week. Then came inflation data

Stocks started the week on a high note but ended with a whimper.

Stocks started the week on a high note but ended with a whimper. The S&P 500 index on Tuesday reached a record high close for the 17th time this year, as investors shrugged off a higher-than-expected 3.2% annual rise in consumer prices and cheered a cooldown in some categories like food prices. Stocks weren’t the only winners. Gold settled at a record high of $2,188.60 a troy ounce on Monday, as investors become more confident that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by June. Bitcoin also reached a record high earlier this week, topping $73,000 a coin. But stocks began shedding some of their gains mid-week on renewed concerns about inflation, and both the yellow metal and cryptocurrency have also retreated from their recent milestones. The Dow fell 191 points, or 0.5%, on Friday. The S&P 500 declined 0.7%. The Nasdaq Composite lost 1%. All three major indexes ended the week lower. The latest Producer Price Index, released Thursday, revealed that US wholesale inflation rose 1.6% for the 12 months ended in February, its fastest clip in months, due to a spike in energy prices. That sent the Dow tumbling more than 300 points at its lowest point on Thursday, before paring losses.