Markets continued to decline on Monday as rising Treasury rates kept the technology sector in the firing line.

Despite ongoing concerns about a Federal Reserve-driven recession, the markets continued to decline on Monday as rising Treasury rates kept the technology sector in the firing line.

The Nasdaq dropped 1.8%, the Dow Jones dropped 0.8%, and the S&P 500 dropped 1.2%. 

Meta Platforms, which had regulatory issues, saw the biggest decline among large tech, plunging more than 3%. 

Because Meta allegedly reduced competition in the marketplaces for online classified ads, the European Union accused the company of violating antitrust laws. Meta could be penalised up to $11.8 billion if proven guilty.

As investors priced in higher for longer interest rates as a result of the Fed's rate hike and messaging of higher for longer rates, the continuous rise in Treasury yields also dampened investor sentiment in the technology sector.

Alphabet Inc, Apple Inc and Microsoft Corporation were also down about 2% adding to their losses from a week earlier.

Given that China recently abandoned its zero-COVID policy and lifted restrictions, consumer discretionary stocks were negatively impacted by the casino and travel sectors.

Tesla turned negative, wiping its intraday rise as Elon Musk is rumoured to be stepping aside from Twitter, which would allow Tesla to receive more attention. 

Elon Musk's resignation as Twitter's CEO was supported by the majority of Twitter users who participated in a poll. Musk vowed to honour the poll's outcome before the results were announced.

Disney, a significant Dow component, dropped 4% after "Avatar: The Way of the Water" took in $134M in sales at the domestic box office, falling short of projections for a range of $135M to $150M.

(Sources: investing.com, reuters.com)