Stocks slammed; Volkswagen scandal deepens; Hillary tackles high drug prices

Stocks (^GSPC) are in freefall this morning as investors once again worry about the timing of a Federal Reserve interest rate increase and global economic growth.

Yahoo Finance Senior Columinst Michael Santoli says Wall Street is still being gripped by "Fed Fever" caused by what he calls the "muddled message" coming from Fed policymakers after last week's announcement to keep interest rates steady.

"They're trying to sound vigilant, they're trying to emphasize that it was a close call not to raise rates, but the takeaway from investors is a little bit unclear," he notes. "And I think that investors are on edge believing that we're now in this very long vigil of a few months at least until we know what the plan really is."

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General Mills profit beats forecasts

Here are some of the stocks the Yahoo Finance team will be watching for you today.

General Mills (GIS) The maker of Cheerios and other cereals topped earnings forecasts in its fiscal first quarter...but revenue came up short. General Mills blames the strong dollar for a 1% drop in sales, saying when you take out the foreign currency effect, they actually increased by 4%.

Darden Restaurants (DRI) The operator of chains such as Olive Garden and LongHorn Steak House is reporting fiscal first quarter profit and revenue that beat analysts' forecasts. Darden says total sales increased 5.7% while those at locations opened at least a year, were up 3.4%.  And the company is boosting its full-year earnings forecast.

ConAgra (CAG) The maker of Hunt's Ketchup and Orville Redenbacher's popcorn says excluding certain items, earnings exceeded forecasts, but revenue was way below estimates. ConAgra says sales and volume of its consumer products were flat.  And it plans to implement a strategic plan to aggressively cut costs.

AutoZone (AZO) The auto parts retailer exceeded estimates on both the top and bottom lines in its fiscal fourth quarter. AutoZone reports sales at stores open at least a year were up 4.5% in the quarter...and its profit margin increased.

Microsoft (MSFT) The software giant says it has begun the worldwide roll out of Office 2016...that's the latest addition to its cloud-based subscription service Office 365.

Volkswagen crisis grows

The fallout from the Volkswagen scandal rolls on. Two days after admitting to rigging emissions tests, the automaker is setting aside over $7 billion and warned on profit. The company’s North American CEO, speaking at an event last night said “our company was dishonest,” and “we have totally screwed up.”

Biotech. It’s been a runaway sector of the market this year, but now it’s getting hit hard because of Hillary Clinton. After reports of companies jacking up generic prices for orphan drugs, Clinton is weighing in. At an event in Iowa, today, she'll reveal her plan to tackle what's she's calling runaway prices.

Goldman Sachs (GS) CEO Lloyd Blankfein has just announced he has a highly curable form of lymphoma.  But he says he should be able to continue working while limiting his travel.

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