NEW YORK: The S&P 500 and the Dow eased on Friday after a steep drop in oil prices pressured energy stocks, but losses were limited by gains in chipmakers and retail stocks.
U.S. crude
The S&P energy index <.SPNY> slid 2.6 percent and registered its biggest daily percentage drop since early February, while Chevron
"It's been a very rough week for oil, and that has weighed" on energy names, said Michael James, managing director of equity trading at Wedbush Securities in Los Angeles. At the same time, the continued pullback in yields has pressured financials, he said.
The S&P 500 banks index <.SPXBK> fell 0.4 percent after U.S. Treasury yields hit their lowest in three weeks.
Stock markets this week also have been roiled by trade tensions with China, a U.S. threat of imposing tariffs on imported cars and uncertainty over a U.S.-North Korea summit.
President Donald Trump said on Friday the summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un could still take place on June 12 as originally planned, a day after canceling it.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 58.67 points, or 0.24 percent, to 24,753.09, the S&P 500 lost 6.43 points, or 0.24 percent, to 2,721.33 and the Nasdaq Composite added 9.43 points, or 0.13 percent, to 7,433.85.
For the week, the Dow was up 0.2 percent, the S&P 500 was up 0.3 percent and the Nasdaq gained 1.1 percent.
The Nasdaq <.IXIC> was boosted by chipmakers, including Broadcom
A 20.2 percent surge in shares of Foot Locker
The S&P retail index <.SPXRT> rose 0.2 percent.
Trading volume was lighter than usual ahead of the long weekend, with markets shut on Monday for the Memorial Day holiday.
About 5.8 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges. That compares with the 6.6 billion daily average for the past 20 trading days, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 1.25-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.05-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted 20 new 52-week highs and one new low; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 104 new highs and 36 new lows. - Reuters
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