ANKARA

US stocks kicked off the last trading day of the first half of the year on a lower note, as the Federal Reserve's inflation indicator remains high and keeping investors worried about the central bank's aggressive monetary tightening.

The core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index increased 4.7% annually in May, below expectations of a 4.8% increase, after an annual gain of 4.9% in April.

The Dow fell 520 points, or 1.7%, to 30,509 at 9.40 a.m. EDT. The S&P 500 lost 62 points, or 1.64%, to 3,756.

The Nasdaq was down 222 points, or 2%, to 10,955.

The VIX volatility index, also known as the fear index, jumped 5.3% to 29.65. The dollar index rose 0.04% to 105.15.

The 10-year US Treasury yield, on the other hand, was down 3.2% to 3.020%.

Precious metals slipped with gold losing 0.06% to $1,816 and silver falling 1.1% to $20.52.

Crude prices were down more than 1%. Global oil benchmark Brent crude was trading at $111.13 for a 1.2% loss, while US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was at $108.31 -- down 1.3%.