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main Asian stock market, including Tokyo and SeoulMarkets were closed Wednesday for the year-end and New Year holidays, and those exchanges that remained open were trading mixed.
exist ChinaThe Hang Seng Index fell 0.5% to 25,715.16 points in early trading; Shanghai Composite Index It rose less than 0.1% to 3,966.39. Taiwan’s stock market rose 0.7% to 28,893.59 points.
In Australia, Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.1% to 8,706.40 points.
Trading in Tokyo is scheduled to be closed on Thursday and Friday for the New Year holiday, with plans to reopen on Monday. Trading in South Korea is scheduled to be closed on Thursday.
Wall Street will continue trading on Wednesday but will be closed on Thursday. Trading volume was light on Tuesday.
The S&P 500 fell 9.50 points, or 0.1%, to 6,894.24. Even with three consecutive days of modest losses, the S&P 500 is still on track for an annual gain of more than 17%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 94.87 points, or 0.2%, to 48,367.06 points. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 55.27 points, or 0.2%, to 23,419.08 points.
The largest weight in the market continues to be technology companies, especially those focused on advances in artificial intelligence.
Nvidia fell 0.4% and Apple fell 0.2%. Both companies hold tremendous value and have a greater impact on the overall direction of the market.
Among the winners, Facebook parent Meta Platforms rose 1.1%. The company is acquiring artificial intelligence startup Manus to continue aggressively promoting cross-platform artificial intelligence products.
The more dramatic action was in commodities markets. Gold prices rose 1.4% to 4,386.30 an ounce. Silver prices rose 10.9%. Gold and silver prices plunged on Monday after the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, one of the largest commodities trading floors, asked traders to put more cash into bets on precious metals. Prices for both metals are set to rise sharply in 2025 due to economic concerns and supply shortages.
Copper prices rose 4.4%, and due to strong demand, copper prices rose more than 40% throughout the year. Base metals are critical to global energy infrastructure and demand is expected to continue to grow as advances in artificial intelligence technology put greater pressure on data centers and energy grids.
In energy trading, U.S. crude oil fell 7 cents to $57.88 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, fell 7 cents to $61.26 a barrel.
Treasury yields were mixed in the bond market. The 10-year Treasury yield rose to 4.12% from 4.11% Monday night. The yield on the two-year Treasury note has stabilized at 3.45% since Monday night, moving closer to expectations for Fed action.
Overall, U.S. Treasury yields have fallen sharply this year, in part due to market expectations of shifts in the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy. The central bank cut interest rates three times in late 2025, most recently at its meeting in early December.
The central bank has been responding to a more complex economic situation. Consumer confidence has weakened throughout the year as inflation squeezes consumers and businesses. The ongoing impact of a broad U.S.-led trade war could fuel inflation.
Inflation remains high while the job market is slowing. The Federal Reserve could cut interest rates to help the economy cope with a slowing job market. But that could exacerbate inflation, which remains well above the Fed’s 2% target. Rising inflation could hamper economic growth.
The Fed has signaled it will be more cautious going forward. The minutes of the December meeting reflected divisions within the central bank over how to deal with uncertainty about threats to the economy.
Wall Street is betting the Fed will keep interest rates steady at its next meeting in January.
In currency trading, the dollar rose slightly against the yen to 156.39 yen from 156.36 yen. The euro traded at $1.1745, little changed from $1.1744.
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AP Business Writer Damian J. Troise contributed to this report.