Stocks slide as investors assess potential impact of U.S. government shutdown

Technology companies led a broad sell-off in stocks on Wall Street Tuesday, with investors assessing the impact of inflation and a political standoff in Washington that could trigger a government shutdown later this week. 

After falling more than 2% earlier in the session, the S&P 500 stock index was down 69 points, or 1.5%, to 4,379 points an hour before the close of trading. The Dow fell 461 points, or 1.3%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite slid 2.4%.

 Brian Price, head of investment management for Commonwealth Financial Network, said in an email that "increased expectations for inflation driven by the significant increase in energy prices has caused longer term interest rates to surge in a short period of time."