US close: Stocks finish lower as oil prices continue to slide
US equities finished Wednesday's session lower as the slump in oil prices continued to weigh on sentiment.
The Dow closed down 0.43% while the Nasdaq dropped 1.48% and the S&P 500 fell 0.76%.
West Texas Intermediate decreased 0.86% to $37.19 per barrel while Brent crude dipped 0.02% to $40.25 per barrel at 0915 GMT. Oil prices took another hit on Friday after OPEC decided to keep production unchanged, adding to concerns about a supply glut.
"The recent further fall in oil prices and imminent commencement of monetary tightening in the US are unlikely to compensate for the ECB’s disappointingly timid action at last week’s policy meeting," Capital Economics said.
In a separate note Capital Economics added that it expects the Federal Reserve will on 16 December raise the fed funds rate by 25 basis points, to a range of between 0.25% and 0.50%.
"In the accompanying statement the Fed will stress again that the pace of additional rate hikes is likely to be unusually gradual. But as Fed Chair Janet Yellen has acknowledged, the future path of interest rates will be entirely data dependent."
In economic data on Wednesday, wholesale inventories in the US declined 0.1% compared with analysts’ expectations for a 0.1% gain, according to the Commerce Department.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of US mortgage application activity, which covers home purchase demand and refinancing demand, climbed 1.2% in the week ended 4 December.
Elsewhere, China’s consumer price index rose 1.5% last month from a year earlier, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, compared to analysts’ estimates of 1.4% and October’s 1.3%. The increase was boosted by a rise in food and services prices.
China producer prices fell 5.9% in November from a year ago, less than the 6% decrease expected and following a 5.9% drop in October.
Meanwhile China set the yuan at 6.414 to the US dollar on Wednesday, its weakest level since August 2011, as the nation tackles currency outflows and an economic slowdown.
In company news, energy giant Kinder Morgan surged despite slashing its dividend late on Tuesday, while Alibaba climbed after Yahoo halted the spinoff of its stake in the Chinese e-commerce firm.
Yahoo shares were up while Lululemon Athletica slumped after reporting weaker-than-expected quarterly revenue.
Dow Chemical jumped following reports it was in advanced talks to complete a merger with DuPont. Costco Wholesale tumbled after posting quarterly profit that missed expectations.
The dollar was on the back foot against the main currencies, falling against the euro, the yen and the pound.