PrintRocket Lab Stock Drops Amid Treasury Yields Rise And Inflation Worries
BY Benzinga | TREASURY | 03:01 PM EDTRocket Lab Corp
- Rocket Lab
(RKLB) shares are under pressure. Why are RKLB shares declining?
Growth Stocks Struggle As Rate Fears Return
Space?related equities are losing altitude as the macro backdrop turns more hostile. U.S. futures were soft and the Nasdaq 100 slipped Tuesday. Inflation concerns resurfaced after economist Ed Yardeni argued that the Federal Reserve is falling “behind the curve,” pointing to recent CPI and PPI readings as evidence that price pressures are not easing fast enough.
Yardeni suggested the Fed may abandon its easing stance entirely and shift toward a tightening posture at the June meeting, with a possible 25 basis point hike in July. Bond yields reflected that anxiety, with the 10?year Treasury near 4.60% and the 2?year around 4.06%. Even so, the CME FedWatch tool still shows markets expecting no rate change in June.
SpaceX IPO Chatter Adds Another Layer Of Volatility
The upcoming SpaceX IPO is also creating turbulence across the commercial space industry. As the June debut approaches, some analysts are warning that the offering could be unusually volatile because of the influence of Elon Musk. University of Florida professor Jay Ritter told Forbes that Musk?linked companies often experience sharper price swings than the broader market, and he cautioned that a valuation north of $1.5 trillion could expose investors to meaningful downside.
Ritter also raised concerns that even if Starlink becomes a massive profit engine, those gains might be funneled into Mars?focused projects rather than returned to shareholders.
Fears Of A Valuation Bubble Build
The SpaceX discussion is happening against a backdrop of broader IPO market skepticism. CNBC's Jim Cramer has warned that a SpaceX listing could inflate valuations to unsustainable levels. The company's rapid climb from roughly $350 billion to a reported $1.75 to $2 trillion IPO target has been cited as a sign of excess.
Momentum Is Still The Story ? And The Problem
Technically, the longer-term trend remains firmly bullish, even if the near-term setup is stretched. RKLB is trading 32.3% above its 20-day SMA at $95.77 and 93.8% above its 200-day SMA at $65.36, a spread that screams "powerful uptrend" but also hints at how little room there is for error if sentiment sours. The moving averages are stacked in the bulls' favor. The 20-day SMA above the 50-day SMA and the 50-day SMA above the 200-day SMA are typically a sign that buyers still control the bigger picture.
The catch is momentum. RSI sits at 73.14, which is overbought territory and consistent with a stock that may need time, or a sharper pullback to reset. Overbought doesn't mean "must crash," but it does mean upside can get crowded, and crowded trades tend to unwind quickly on down-market days. That dynamic helps explain why traders have been quicker to lock in gains as the stock retests elevated levels after pushing into overbought territory in May, with the most recent swing low in March preceding a rally that accelerated into April's swing high and May's 52-week high.
Key levels now matter because they're where psychology meets liquidity:
- Key Resistance: $138.38 ? the 52-week high from May, a level that can attract sellers on retests
- Key Support: $101.30 ? near the 20-day EMA, a common "first line" trend support in strong uptrends
If the stock can hold trend support, the bulls keep the benefit of the doubt. If it can't, the market will start asking whether the move was about fundamentals, or simply about momentum finding a home.
RKLB Shares Are Sliding
RKLB Price Action: Rocket Lab
Image: Shutterstock
