01:01 PM EDT, 04/30/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes fell and government bond yields surged Tuesday after stronger-than-expected growth in the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of wage growth in Q1.

The S&P 500 fell 0.8% to 5,077.4, with the Nasdaq Composite down 0.9% to 15,842.2 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average 1% lower at 37,956.1. All the sectors were sliding with energy recording the steepest decline.

In company news, F5 (FFIV) sank 7% intraday, among the worst performers in the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, after fiscal Q2 revenue declined more than forecast. The company also issued fiscal Q3 guidance that fell short of the average analyst estimates compiled by Capital IQ.

Meanwhile, Trane Technologies ( TT ) Q1 adjusted continuing earnings and net revenue increased more than forecast. Shares jumped nearly 6% intraday, the second-biggest return on the S&P 500.

In economic news, the Employment Cost Index, a leading indicator of wage growth closely watched by Fed policymakers, rose 1.2% quarter over quarter in March, up from 0.9% in the previous print and ahead of the 1% consensus forecast.

This kind of growth in employment costs requires strong productivity growth to pay for it without sparking inflation risk, according to a research note from Scotiabank. Q1 productivity growth arrives on Thursday and will likely "slow to a crawl." Unit labor costs, a measure of productivity-adjusted labor costs, will probably come on "strong" on Thursday.

"The US also released mixed data, including a much stronger gain in a pair of repeat sales house price figures for February and a sharp drop in consumer confidence, but markets largely looked through those releases and stuck with the [Employment Cost Index] reaction," Derek Holt, the head of capital markets economics, said in the note.

The US 10-year Treasury yield jumped 4.9 basis points to 4.66%, and the two-year rate advanced 3.7 basis points to 5.01%.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil slumped 0.9% to $81.87 a barrel.