NEW YORK: U.S. stocks ended Thursday’s thinly-traded session mostly lower, as investors grappled with a drop in oil prices and a continued impasse between Greece and its creditors over loans.
Meanwhile, mixed economic reports stoked uncertainty about the Federal Reserve’s timetable for hiking rates.
The S&P 500 SPX, -0.11% ended 2.23 points, or 0.1%, lower at 2,097.45, with six of its 10 main sectors closing lower. Technology and consumer discretionary stocks led the gains, while utilities and telecoms stocks saw biggest declines.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.24% dropped 44.08 points, or 0.2%, to 17,985.77, with two thirds of its 30 members finishing with losses. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc was the biggest decliner among the blue-chips, after missing earnings estimates and announcing a plan to raise wages for its employees.
The Russell 2000 RUT, +0.00% ended flat at 1,227.74, breaking a four-day winning streak. The index of small companies set an intraday record earlier, but failed to close at a fresh high.
Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite COMP, +0.37% defied the general trend and closed 18.34 points, or 0.4%, higher at 4,924.70, closing higher for the seventh consecutive day.
Kim Forrest, senior investment strategist at Fort Pitt Capital, said the oil price appreciation over the past few weeks was likely unwarranted.
“There were no fundamental reasons for oil to recover from $43 to $53 a barrel, so I would argue that that was due to short-covering trades. So, when investors realize that there is a lot of oil stored, prices got hit again,” Forrest said.
“Weak opening on Wall Street is not surprising, as we have been getting a lot of weak data, despite strong unemployment figures. But as interest rates and inflation keep falling, multiples keep rising. The trend lately has been that stocks open weaker and rise towards the end,” she said.
