- Stocks closed mostly lower as a selloff in biotech and health care stocks outweighed gains in the energy and materials sectors, but the Dow edged to a small gain mostly due to a surge in shares of DuPont.
- "Today's a natural response to overbought conditions with news ahead," says Bruce Bittles, chief investment strategist at RW Baird, referring to the upcoming start of earnings season.
- Weakness in biotechs kept the broader market under pressure, losing 3.6%, and the broader health care sector tumbled 2.3%.
- Energy (+2.2%) and materials (+1.3%) continued their recent show of strength, extending their respective week-to-date gains to 5.1% and 4%, backed by rising commodity prices including crude oil, which surged 4.9% to $48.53/bbl.
- Investor participation was ahead of average, as950M-plus shares changed hands at the NYSE floor.
- Treasury prices ended near highs of the day, with the 10-year note adding a quarter point and pressuring its yield by 2 bps to 2.04%.