U.S. market indexes were down on Friday as stocks were lower following the U.K. vote to exit the European Union.
For the day the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 17,399.86 for a loss of 611.21 points or 3.39%. The Standard & Poor's 500 was also lower, closing at 2,037.30 for a loss of 76.02 points or 3.60%. The Nasdaq Composite closed lower at 4,707.98 for a loss of 202.06 points or 4.12%. The VIX Volatility Index was higher at 25.76 for a gain of 8.51 points or 49.33%.
In the Dow Jones Industrial Average stocks leading losses for the day included the following:
- Goldman Sachs (GS, Financial) -7.07%.
- JPMorgan (JPM, Financial) -6.95%.
- Caterpillar (CAT, Financial) -6.64%.
- International Business Machines (IBM, Financial) -5.64%.
- Boeing (BA, Financial) -5.26%.
The U.K.’s exit vote led to substantial losses for stocks in the U.S. as companies and investors evaluated how the exit would affect global trade, international sales and currency valuations among other factors.
The dollar strengthened globally for the day as currency markets were volatile. The U.S. Dollar Index gained 2.34 points or 2.51% to 95.55. The euro and pound were lower in global currency trading. The euro weakened against the dollar with an exchange rate of 1.1106. The pound was also weaker with a dollar exchange rate of 1.3676.
The day’s news was mostly a surprise for U.S. markets that had expected the U.K. to remain in the European Union. Also adding to the day’s news was the departure of U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron, which caused further losses.
In a report on Friday, Morningstar gave a summary of the U.K. voting that provided insight into what investors can expect in the U.S. and globally.
Disclosure: I do not own any shares of any stocks included in this article.
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