US stocks on losing streak

NEW YORK: US stocks on Thursday declined again after a surprisingly good report on US economic growth raised expectations the Federal Reserve will hasten a plan to scale back aggressive monetary stimulus.

At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 68.26 points (0.43 percent) at 15,821.51. The broad-based S&P 500 fell 7.78 points (0.43 percent) to 1,785.03, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dipped 4.84 points (0.12 percent) to 4,033.17.

The Dow and S&P 500 have now declined the last five days.

Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at BMO Private Bank, said the losses were unusual for December, which is usually a good month for the stock market.
"The market is taking good news as bad news," Ablin said. "Investors are fearful of Fed policy and are shifting their beliefs on the timing of tapering."

Thursday's declines came after the Commerce Department reported the US economy grew at speedy 3.6 percent in the third quarter, far above the 3.0 percent many analysts had expected. - AFP