![Inflation fears send investors scurrying for the exit](https://cbsnews2.cbsistatic.com/hub/i/r/2020/03/19/b32e9c3f-a71c-48e0-b64a-33986aa8aaf9/thumbnail/1200x630/f7fc047249bee5b88f4ad57b36e46a2c/rts36kgv.jpg)
Inflation fears send investors scurrying for the exit
CBSN
Stocks fell sharply Wednesday as investors fretted over data showing that U.S. consumer prices rose at their fastest rate last month since 2008, raising concerns about surging inflation.
The Dow slid 681 points, or 2%, to close at 33,588. The broader S&P 500 stock index fell 89 points, or 2.1%, to 4,061, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq ended the day down 2.7%. The S&P 500, which like the Dow reached a record high on May 7, is flirting with its worst weekly drop since October. Investors have been worrying that inflation could return after being absent for many years as the economy revs out of the recession brought on by the pandemic. Federal Reserve officials and other economists have said moderate inflation may actually be a good thing in a recovery.![](/newspic/picid-6252001-20250214202746.jpg)
Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a high-stakes meeting at this year's Munich Security conference to discuss the Trump administration's efforts to end the war in Ukraine. Vance said the U.S. seeks a "durable" peace, while Zelenskyy expressed the desire for extensive discussions to prepare for any end to the conflict.
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Washington — The Trump administration on Thursday intensified its sweeping efforts to shrink the size of the federal workforce, the nation's largest employer, by ordering agencies to lay off nearly all probationary employees who hadn't yet gained civil service protection - potentially affecting hundreds of thousands of workers.
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It was Labor Day weekend 2003 when Matt Scribner, a local horse farrier and trainer who also competes in long-distance horse races, was on his usual ride in a remote part of the Sierra Nevada foothills — just a few miles northeast of Auburn, California —when he noticed a freshly dug hole along the trail that piqued his curiosity.