03:57 PM EDT, 09/04/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes ended lower Wednesday as markets analyzed remarks by a Federal Reserve official and the latest economic data.

* Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said policymakers cannot afford to wait for inflation to drop to their 2% target before beginning to reduce interest rates as that would risk "labor market disruptions."

Bostic said that although his confidence about inflation has strengthened, he's "not quite prepared" to declare victory yet. "History shouts to us that loosening monetary policy prematurely is a dangerous gambit that can rekindle inflation and entrench it in the economy for many months or even years," he said.

* US job openings fell to about 7.67 million in July from 7.91 million the previous month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The consensus on Bloomberg was for an 8.1 million print.

* October West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed down $1.14 to settle at $69.20 per barrel, while November Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen down $1.00 to $72.75 after reports OPEC is reconsidering plans to restore 180,000 barrels per day of 2.2-million bpd of voluntary production cuts beginning next month as demand worries continue.

* Dollar Tree ( DLTR ) shares plunged 22% as the bargain store chain's fiscal Q2 earnings unexpectedly slid year over year, while sales missed estimates amid macro pressures on consumers.

* Tesla (TSLA) was up 4.3%. The electric vehicle maker plans to produce a six-seat variant of its Model Y car in China from late 2025, Reuters reported, citing unnamed sources.