Dow plummets more than 1,100 points as US stocks crater on growing fears of a recession following weak results from retail giants

The stock market fell after the first-quarter earnings miss from Target raised recession fears.

Target stock plummeted as much as 28% in Wednesday trades after the retailer reported lower profits than expected. The retailer expects a $1 billion hit to its bottom line this year because of a surge in fuel and freight costs.

Walmart's poor earnings release on Tuesday sent its stock plunging more than 11%. Walmart and Target said a mix of poor-selling inventory and higher input costs hit profits, but they both said the consumer still remains on solid footing.

At 4:00 p.m., the US indexes stood here. The close is on Wednesday.

Home Depot sold off even though it beat earnings estimates on Tuesday despite the earnings decline at Lowe's. The big earnings misses from retailers are now being pointed out as a sign that an economic recession is imminent.

The S&P 500 will fall at least 40% from its peak as a recession begins to take hold due to persistent inflation and slowing economic growth, according to Jeremy Grantham.

The CEO of Wells Fargo said there is no question of an economic downturn in the US. Speaking to the Wall Street Journal's Future of Everything Festival on Tuesday, Charlie Scharf said it was going to be hard to avoid a recession.

The US wants to impose tariffs on Russian oil to limit the rise in energy prices as it talks with European allies. The European Union will impose a full ban on Russian oil by the end of the year.

According to ICE Data Services, the Kremlin is likely to default within a year. The likelihood of the Biden administration blocking bond payments to the US increased on Wednesday.

The electric vehicle maker was kicked out of the S&P 500 ESG Index on Wednesday due to its poor ESG score. The decision showed that ESG is a scam, according to Musk.

In April, consumer prices across the UK economy surged by the most in 40 years, as rising energy and food bills deepened a cost-of-living crisis that threatens to plunge the country into recession later this year. The Office for National Statistics said consumer price index inflation hit 9% in April, up from 7% in March.

The price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell as much as 5%. The price of oil fell as much as 2.5% to $108.71.

There was a 2.94% fall in the price of the digital currency. The price of ether fell to $1,956

The price of gold fell to $1,811.20 per ounce. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell.