Yellen Comments Sparks Sell Off

On Wednesday, the market moved sideways in the morning session while waiting for Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen to give her news conference. According to Yellen, the bond buying program is scheduled to end around January 2015 and interest rates will be raised sometime in the 3rd quarter of 2015. After her comments, the market sold off hard and fast, but the market snapped back in the late afternoon, shaving off some of the day's losses. 

By the close, the Nasdaq had lost -25 points (-0.59%), the S&P fell -11 points (-0.61%), and the Dow dropped -114 points (-0.70%). Volume was higher for the indices. Decliners beat advances by 3 to 1, and down volume was greater than up volume by a ratio of 2.6 to 1. 

Investors will digest Yellen's comments further overnight, and tomorrow may provide more clarity on market direction. While the market trend is still up, it has been under selling pressure for the last two weeks. 

Tomorrow's economic reports: Initial jobless claims, existing home sales, and Philadelphia Fed Survey.