Global Risk Assets Hit in U.S. Session: 3 Reasons Why

Global risk assets were weighed down during Wednesday's U.S. session on a barrage of negative headlines.

The S&P 500 Index closed down 1.26 percent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.63 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.01 percent.

Crude oil futures fell 2.5 percent while safe-havens like the U.S. dollar rallied.

Below are three factors that pushed down global risk assets.

1. Poor earnings from Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL)

On Tuesday after-hours, Apple reported earnings that fell below analyst expectations for the first time since 2004.

On Wednesday, the market reacted negatively to the report and sold off shares of Apple and other tech companies.

Apple's miss was especially disappointing for the tech sector in light of IBM's (NYSE:IBM) weak earnings report released on Monday.

2. Doubts Over the Eurozone Bailout Plan

Previously, the market was very hopeful on the prospect of a giant bailout for the Eurozone after the Guardian reported late Tuesday that France and Germany will endorse expanding the power of the Eurozone bailout fund to 2 trillion euros, citing EU diplomats.

However, Dow Jones reported soon after that the 2 trillion euro figure is totally wrong, citing an official.

On Wednesday, the Financial Times also reported that European authorities will identify less than 100 billion euros in European bank capital shortfalls while the market had hoped for more than 200 billion euros.

3. A Gloomy Fed Beige Book

The September Fed Beige Book report, an anecdotal survey of the U.S. economy, was gloomy.

It still showed that overall economic activity expanded.

However, it found that many districts saw growth as modest or slight, the outlook for business conditions as weaker or less certain, and noted restraint in hiring and capital spending plans.