The US markets closed mostly lower on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average extending their losing streak to fourth straight sessions. US budget negotiators are near a deal in which Democrats would accept fresh revenue from user fees and Republicans would agree to more federal spending, steps that could avoid another government shutdown next year. Besides, the US economy continued to grow at a modest to moderate pace from early October through mid-November, the Federal Reserve stated in its anecdotal Beige Book report issued. Reports from the twelve Federal Reserve Districts indicated that the economy continued to expand at a modest to moderate pace from early October through mid-November. Activity in the New York, Cleveland, Richmond, Atlanta, St. Louis, Minneapolis, and Dallas Districts grew at a moderate pace, while Philadelphia, Chicago, Kansas City, and San Francisco cited modest growth. Boston reported that economic activity continued to expand. Manufacturing activity continued to expand in most districts, with gains noted in the motor-vehicle and high-technology industries. The policymakers are scheduled to meet on December 17-18, when investors expect Fed to begin scaling back its asset purchases.
On the economy front, Automatic Data Processing Inc. (ADP) reported that private-sector employment picked up in November, as employers added 215,000 jobs. The ADP revised October's gain to 184,000. The nation’s trade deficit fell 5.4% to $40.6 billion in October, as the US exported more petroleum, soybeans and collectibles while buying foreign-made goods at a slower rate, the Commerce Department reported. Exports rose 1.8% to $192.7 billion. Imports climbed a smaller 0.4% to $233.3 billion, but that still marked the highest level since March 2012. Additionally, Americans looking to buy newly built homes evidently brushed off concerns about the government shutdown in October, pushing up sales to their highest level in fourth months on the lure of lower prices. New US homes sold at an annual rate of 444,000 in October, up 25.4% from 354,000 in September.
Meanwhile, US service-sector companies expanded at a slower pace in November, the Institute for Supply Management reported. The ISM stated that its survey of purchasing managers -- executives who buy supplies for their companies - fell to 53.9% in November from 55.4% in October.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 24.85 points or 0.16 percent to 15,889.80, the S&P 500 was down 2.34 points or 0.13 percent to 1,792.81 while Nasdaq added 0.80 points or 0.02 percent to 4,038.00.
Indian ADRs closed in green on Wednesday; HDFC Bank was up 1.84%, ICICI Bank was up 1.82%, Infosys was up 1.16%, Dr. Reddy’s Lab was up 0.36% and Tata Motors was up by 0.25%.
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