All three of the major US equity indexes - the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite - had whetted the appetite of equity bulls by reaching one pinnacle after another since the final week of October, energized by stellar third-quarter earnings, assurance of friendly monetary policy by the Federal Reserve and a $1 trillion infrastructure spending boost passed by Congress.
The party came to a stop after 11 days of record highs for the Nasdaq, eight days of wins for the S&P 500 and peaks in seven days out of nine for the Dow.
The market “went on a relentless run and was ripe for a down day”, Ed Moya, analyst at online trading platform OANDA, said.
Nasdaq, which groups Big Tech names such as Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Google, closed down 96 points, or 0.6%, at 15,887. It gained almost 6% from its 11-day winning streak, hitting a final record high of 16,053. Nasdaq remains up 23% on the year.
The S&P 500, which represents the top 500 US stocks, settled down 96 points, or 0.6%, at 4,685. The index rose more than 3% over an eight-day stretch, hitting an all-time high of 4,719. The S&P 500 is up 25% on the year.
The Dow, a blue-chip index which groups mostly industrial stocks, finished down 112 points, or 0.3%, at 36,320. It gained almost 2% net over an eight-day stretch, rising to a hitherto unseen peak of 36,566. The Dow remains up 19% on the year.