Dow slips 31.8
Associated PressNEW YORK - Stocks drifted lower in a quiet session today, with most market averages slipping back from the record highs set yesterday. Early gains evaporated as demand waned in the last full session of 1999. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 31.80 to close at 11,452.86. Earlier, the Dow was up as much as 84 points.
The Nasdaq composite index fell 4.59 to 4,036.87, after closing above the 4,000 milestone for the first time yesterday. The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 1.01 to 1,464.47, a closing record.
Advancers beat decliners by a 9-to-7 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,767 up, 1,363 down and 423 unchanged. NYSE volume totaled 561.57 million shares vs. 573.73 million yesterday. Volume dried up in early afternoon as some Wall Street professionals wrapped up their workweeks early. Most financial markets, including the stock market, will conduct a half day of trading tomorrow, closing at 1 p.m. EST (8 a.m. Hawaii time) for New Year's.
The NYSE composite index rose 1.18 to 647.21; the American Stock Exchange index soared 14.26, or 1.67 percent, to 866.12; the Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 0.42 to 496.59, down from yesterday's record close.
The price of the Treasury's 30-year bond rose 7/32, or $2.19 per $1,000 face amount; its yield fell 2 basis point to 6.42 percent.
Qualcomm, which soared $156 yesterday after an analyst said its shares should reach $1,000 within a year, had another wild session today. Shares ended down $12 at $647. A 4-for-1 split of the stock was to take effect at the close of trading today, effectively making the analyst's price target $250 per share.