US close: Stocks end week on a soft note, White House in focus
Wall Street went into the weekend before Thanksgiving Day slightly lower, with analysts continuing to mull developments regarding Russia's alleged involvement in the US presidential election.
By the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.43% or 100.12 points lower at 23,358.24, alongside a 0.26% or 6.79 point dip on the S&P 500 to 2,578.85 while the Nasdaq Composite ended down by 0.15% or 10.50 points at 6,782.79.
However, despite Friday's losses the NYSE's advance/decline ratio was at nearly 2.0.
From a sector standpoint, the weakest segments of the market were: Trucking (-1.49%), Marine Transportation (-1.11%) and Waste&Disposal (-1.10%).
Oanda analyst Craig Erlam said: "Strong gains yesterday left US equity markets back within touching distance of record highs and while that will have given some investors’ confidence that the recent stumble has passed, an inability to hold onto these today still leaves markets vulnerable to a broader pull-back. A failure to make a new high is typically another warning that the trend is weakening, especially coming after a month in which it has fallen into a sideways trend, rather than continuing its gradual ascent.
"Slow progress on tax reform in the US and reports that Robert Mueller has issued a subpoena to the Trump campaign in relation to the Russia probe are two other things that are being blamed for the more risk averse tone but I think in reality, neither of these would have had such an impact a month ago and it’s probably more a reflection of a less bullish investor."
Erlam added that from a technical perspective, 23,250 now looks like a very important level for the Dow and a break below here could trigger a bigger correction in the index.
"Given the steady gains we've seen over the last few months, even move back towards 23,000 would only represent a small correction in the most recent rally and would be healthy for markets."
On the data front, US housing starts shot higher by 13.7% in October to hit an annualised rate of 1.290.
Economists at Barclays told clients such strong momentum would not last, but the strong reading for last month nevertheless pushed their tracking estimate for fourth quarter GDP up by a tenth of a percentage point to 2.8%.
Stock of Abercrombie & Fitch rocketed after the retailer posted better-than-expected third-quarter earnings and revenue.
Electric car maker Tesla was also on the front foot after it launched a semi-autonomous electric big rig late on Thursday, which it promised will deliver big cost efficiencies.
21st Century Fox found a strong bid following reports that Comcast and Verizon Communications were looking to bid for some of its assets.
Foot Locker was another top gainer after its third-quarter sales and profit dropped less than expected.
Dow Jones - Risers
Nike Inc. (NKE) $59.19 3.42%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $45.42 1.45%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $167.74 0.14%
American Express Co. (AXP) $93.67 0.14%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $114.71 0.12%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $70.74 0.08%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $35.90 0.06%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $55.20 0.05%
3M Co. (MMM) $229.36 -0.03%
International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) $148.97 -0.10%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Intel Corp. (INTC) $44.63 -2.23%
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) $97.47 -2.16%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $45.71 -1.80%
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $116.55 -1.15%
Visa Inc. (V) $109.82 -1.08%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $82.40 -0.96%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $88.43 -0.92%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $166.70 -0.82%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $129.91 -0.68%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $137.98 -0.63%
S&P 500 - Risers
Viacom Inc. Class B (VIAB) $26.15 10.38%
Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $72.25 9.99%
Gap Inc. (GPS) $29.38 6.99%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class B (FOX) $30.48 6.57%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class A (FOXA) $31.15 6.24%
Southwestern Energy Co. (SWN) $6.45 5.74%
Target Corp. (TGT) $58.14 5.52%
Urban Outfitters Inc. (URBN) $27.90 5.48%
Kroger Co. (KR) $23.40 5.07%
Range Resources Corp. (RRC) $18.03 4.83%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Ryder System Inc. (R) $76.35 -4.88%
Cummins Inc. (CMI) $159.43 -4.62%
PACCAR Inc. (PCAR) $66.69 -4.32%
SCANA Corp. (SCG) $43.45 -3.44%
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $72.91 -3.28%
KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $101.65 -2.98%
Tenet Healthcare Corp. (THC) $13.24 -2.65%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $108.82 -2.49%
Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $36.16 -2.45%
CH Robinson Worldwide Inc (CHRW) $78.44 -2.44%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $367.50 12.65%
Viacom Inc. Class B (VIAB) $26.15 10.38%
Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $72.25 9.99%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class B (FOX) $30.48 6.57%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class A (FOXA) $31.15 6.24%
Discovery Communications Inc. Class A (DISCA) $17.55 4.71%
Discovery Communications Inc. Class C (DISCK) $16.46 4.71%
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $215.10 4.44%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $269.73 2.76%
Liberty Interactive Corporation QVC Group (QVCA) $24.86 2.64%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
PACCAR Inc. (PCAR) $66.69 -4.32%
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $72.91 -3.28%
KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $101.65 -2.98%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $108.82 -2.49%
Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $36.16 -2.45%
Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $56.49 -2.33%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $44.63 -2.23%
Liberty Global Plc Lilac Class A (LILA) $21.42 -1.74%
Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $76.38 -1.70%
J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (JBHT) $101.44 -1.50%