US STOCKS-Nasdaq falls as rate worries take center stage; Powell on deck

(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock markets, click or type LIVE/ in a news window.) * US Q2 GDP growth unrevised at 2.1% * Weekly jobless claims edge higher * Micron slides after dour Q1 forecast * Indexes: Dow flat, S&P down 0.12%, Nasdaq down 0.41% (Updated at 9:41 a.m. ET/1341 GMT) By Ankika Biswas and Shashwat Chauhan Sept 28 (Reuters) - The Nasdaq lagged major U.S. stock indexes on Thursday as megacaps came under pressure with Treasury yields resuming their upward charge, while investors assessed fresh economic data and awaited Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell's remarks.

The Nasdaq lagged major U.S. stock indexes on Thursday as megacaps came under pressure with Treasury yields resuming their upward charge, while investors assessed fresh economic data and awaited Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell's remarks. As the 10-year Treasury yields regained steam, megacap growth stocks including Apple, Microsoft , Amazon.com and Alphabet shed between 0.4% and 2.2%.

Technology led declines amongst major S&P 500 sectors, down 0.7%, while healthcare added 0.5%. At 9:41 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 5.50 points, or 0.02%, at 33,544.77, the S&P 500 was down 5.18 points, or 0.12%, at 4,269.33, and the Nasdaq Composite was down 54.28 points, or 0.41%, at 13,038.57.

Meanwhile, data showed the U.S. economy

maintained a fairly strong pace of growth in the second quarter, the government confirmed on Thursday. It also appeared to have gathered momentum this quarter amid a resilient labor market. "We expect a weakening labor market and mounting headwinds to disposable incomes will drive a sharper slowdown in consumption and the broader economy over the rest of the year," said Michael Pearce, lead U.S. economist at Oxford Economics.

Pearce added that a sharp slowdown into year-end will keep policymakers on the sidelines, rather than following through with an additional rate hike as planned. Also on radar will be comments by Powell at 4 p.m. ET, as well as remarks by voting member Lisa Cook during the day.

Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said the U.S. central bank may be on the cusp of "something rare" by lowering inflation without a major blow to jobs and growth. Deepening inflation concerns, U.S. oil futures jumped to a more than one-year high on earlier on Thursday.

Traders' bets on the benchmark rate remaining unchanged in November and December stood around 79% and 62%, respectively, according to CME's FedWatch tool. Meanwhile, a 25-basis-point rate cut is being priced in as early as March, growing to over 31% in June and July. The scope for interest rates staying higher for longer than anticipated has solidified with soaring energy prices keeping headline inflation elevated.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are on course for their worst monthly performance of the year as Treasury yields hit multi-year highs on uncertainty around interest rates. All the three indexes are set for their first quarterly decline in 2023.

With a partial government shutdown just three days away, a procedural vote on a bipartisan short-term spending measure by the Senate on Thursday will also be closely watched. Among individual movers, Micron Technology dropped 4.7% after forecasting a bigger-than-expected first-quarter loss.

CarMax lost 11.2% after the used-car retailer posted a lower-than-expected quarterly profit. Accenture

slumped 4.4% after the IT services firm forecast full-year earnings and first-quarter revenue below Wall Street targets. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.34-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.26-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P index recorded two new 52-week highs and eight new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 15 new highs and 88 new lows.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)