The US markets on the final trading day of the year closed lower on Friday, as investors took profits on some of 2016’s highflying sectors, although major indexes posted strong annual gains and the Dow closed out its best year since 2013. However, trading volume was light, as is typical for the final trading week of the year. Markets will be closed for the New Year’s Day holiday on Monday. The stocks have been in a particular uptrend since last month’s presidential election, which sparked a rally that has contributed the bulk of the year’s gains. Investors are betting that President-elect Donald Trump will push for policies - including massive corporate tax cuts and deregulation - that will accelerate economic growth.
On the economy front, manufacturing activity in the Chicago-area fell more than expected in December, dropping back from a previous reading that had been the highest since January 2015 and dampening optimism over the US economic outlook. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said its Chicago purchasing managers’ index decreased by 3.0 points to a seasonally adjusted 54.6 this month from a reading of 57.6 in November. MNI Indicators, which helps elaborate the report, noted that three of the five components included in the barometer decreased, while employment held firm and supplier deliveries increased slightly. New orders led the decline, falling 6.7 points to 56.5. Despite the decline in the general index, MNI Indicators pointed out that the reading for the fourth quarter hit a two-year high.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 57.18 points or 0.29 percent to 19,762.60, Nasdaq slipped 48.97 points or 0.90 percent to 5,383.12 and S&P 500 was down by 10.43 points or 0.46 percent to 2,238.83.
The Indian ADRs closed mostly in green; Dr. Reddy’s Lab was up 0.50%, Tata Motors was up 0.15%, ICICI Bank was up 0.09% and Infosys was up 0.09%. On the other hand, HDFC Bank was down 0.15%.