Dow now at 10,497, down 50 points. Markets will be closed Friday.
NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market looks to end 2009 on a down
note as institutional investors make some last-minute adjustments
to their portfolios.
News that weekly unemployment claims fell to the lowest level since
July 2008 gave stocks an initial blip Thursday, but the market has
given back the gains as the few traders on hand collect profits to
close out their books. Many investors believe that the market,
which has had its best year since 2003, has seen the bulk of its
gains for a while. So those were still at their desks were moving
money out of some stocks.
The Dow Jones industrial average is down 58, or 0.5 percent, at
10,489. The broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index is off 4, or 0.4
percent, at 1,122, and the Nasdaq composite index is off 6, or 0.3
percent, at 2,284.
