Shares closed slightly lower on Friday in quiet trading as investors returned from Christmas break.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell 2.11 points, or less than 0.1%, to close at 6,929.94, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 20.19 points, or less than 0.1%, to 48,710.97, and the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 20.21 points, or less than 0.1%, to 23,593.10.
Trading was extremely light as institutional investors had largely liquidated their positions this year. Trading hours on the New York Stock Exchange averaged about half the day.
With just three business days remaining until 2025, the S&P 500 has risen nearly 18% this year, helped by the Trump administration’s deregulatory policies and investor optimism about the future of artificial intelligence.
Gold and silver prices continued to rise, with silver rising nearly 8% to $77.20 an ounce. Gold rose 1.1%. Both precious metals have rallied this year as investors sought safe havens other than stocks and bonds, and silver also soared due to supply constraints. The Miners posted solid gains on Friday. Freeport-McMoRan Market rose 2.2%.
Previous increases in gold prices partly reflected concerns during the U.S. government shutdown. Expectations that the US Federal Reserve (Fed) will cut interest rates further in the new year and the dollar will weaken against other currencies also accelerated gold buying.
Shares in Target rose 3.1% after the Financial Times reported that an activist investor was buying a stake in the retail giant.
US crude oil fell 2.8% and Brent crude oil fell 2.6%.
In the bond market, US Treasury yields remained relatively stable. The yield on 10-year government bonds fell slightly to 4.13%.
Markets in Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia were closed. Most European markets remained closed on Friday.
Kurtenbach writes for The Associated Press.
