NEW YORK — Stocks fell broadly on Friday as Wall Street closed out a holiday-shortened week on a down note.
The losses were made worse by sharp declines for the Big Tech stocks known as the “Magnificent 7”, which can heavily influence the direction of the market because of their large size.
The S&P 500 fell 66.75 points, or 1.1%, to 5,970.84. Roughly 90% of stocks in the benchmark index lost ground, but it managed to hold onto a modest gain of 0.7% for the week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 333.59 points, or 0.8%, to 42,992.21. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite fell 298.33 points, or 1.5%, to 19,722.03.
Semiconductor giant Nvidia slumped 2.1%. Microsoft declined 1.7%. Each has a market value above $3 trillion, giving the companies outsized sway on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.
A wide range of retailers also fell. Amazon fell 1.5% and Best Buy slipped 1.5%. The sector is being closely watched for clues on how it performed during the holiday shopping season.
Energy stocks held up better than the rest of the market, with a loss of less than 0.1% as crude oil prices rose.
“There’s just some uncertainty over this relief rally we’ve witnessed since last week,” said Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist for LPL Financial.
The S&P 500 gained nearly 3% over a 3-day stretch before breaking for the Christmas holiday. On Thursday, the index posted a small decline.
Despite Friday’s drop, the market is moving closer to another standout annual finish. The S&P 500 is on track for a gain of around 25% in 2024. That would mark a second consecutive yearly gain of more than 20%, the first time that has happened since 1997-1998.
The gains have been driven partly by upbe