Resurgence in Treasury yields hammers tech stocks, drives Nasdaq below 13,000 to mark worst 2-day skid in 6 months

U.S. stock benchmarks on Wednesday closed lower and technology and tech-related shares got whacked as a continued rise in bond yields forced a rotational shift out of highflying tech and into areas of the market that might benefit from a regime of rising interest rates, like banks and energy . A report from the Federal Reserve's Beige Book, a survey of business conditions in the central bank's 12 regional districts, also showed only a modest uptick in economic activity to start the year, despite headway on COVID the vaccination front. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down by about 0.4% at 31,270, while the S&P 500 index closed off 1.3% at 3,820. The tech-laden Nasdaq Composite Index, took the brunt of the selling, off 2.7%, at 12,997 to mark the index's worst two-day skid since September, according to Dow Jones Market Data. Meanwhile, the initial public offering of health-care data company Oscar Health Inc. , finished down nearly 11% in its public debut. And the 10-year Treasury note was around 1.47%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.