The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 27,881.72 on Tuesday with a loss of 27.88 points or -0.10%. The S&P 500 closed at 3,132.52 for a loss of 3.44 points or -0.11%. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 8,616.18 for a loss of 5.64 points or -0.07%. The VIX Volatility Index was lower at 15.85 for a loss of 0.0100 points or -0.063%.
Tuesday’s market movers
Stocks closed lower Tuesday with uncertainty in a number of areas quelling investors’ appetite. The Federal Reserve began its two-day policy meeting with no rate change expected, but a potentially new discussion on policy strategy possible for commentary Wednesday. China trade news also continued to be a factor for volatility, with negotiations suggesting a hold on Sunday’s new tariff implementation but no final details yet.
From Congress, Nancy Pelosi announced revisions to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Accord with stronger provisions for labor markets and environmental protections. The House of Representatives also released two articles of impeachment on abuse of power and obstruction of Congress with a potential third in the works for obstruction of justice.
Economic reports affecting market trading included the following:
- The NFIB Business Optimism Index increased to 104.7 from 102.4.
- The Commerce Department released its Productivity and Costs report. Nonfarm productivity decreased 0.2% in the third quarter following an increase of 2.5%. Unit labor costs increased 2.5% in the third quarter following an increase of 2.4%.
- The Treasury held an auction for 10-year notes at a rate of 1.842%.
In the S&P 500, real estate led losses and energy led gains. In the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the following stocks led losses:
- 3M (MMM, Financial) -1.30%
- Boeing (BA, Financial) -0.96%
- Exxon Mobil (XOM, Financial) -0.86%
- Coca-Cola (KO, Financial) -0.54%
- United Technologies (UTX, Financial) -0.54%
- Procter & Gamble (PG, Financial) -0.44%
Small-cap stocks
In small caps, the Russell 2000 closed at 1,631.71 for a gain of 2.10 points or 0.13%. The S&P 600 closed at 998.87 for a loss of 0.19 points or -0.019%. The Dow Jones U.S. Small-Cap Growth Index closed at 10,389.69 for a loss of 3.09 points or -0.03%. The Dow Jones U.S. Small-Cap Value Index closed at 9,764.43 for a gain of 3.98 points or 0.04%.
Other notable indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index at 2,011.75 for a loss of 1.73 points or -0.086%; the S&P 100 at 1,396.76 for a loss of 1.58 points or -0.11%; the Nasdaq 100 at 8,354.29 for a loss of 8.45 points or -0.10%; the Russell 3000 at 1,836.73 for a loss of 1.84 points or -0.10%; the Russell 1000 at 1,730.94 for a loss of 2.02 points or -0.12%; the Wilshire 5000 at 32,030.04 for a loss of 30.35 points or -0.095%; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index at 735.69 for a loss of 0.41 points or -0.056%.
Not a Premium Member of GuruFocus? Sign up for a free 7-day trial here.
