Stocks down at close of quiet day

NEW YORK — After an early-afternoon slump, U.S. stocks finished mostly lower Monday in a quiet day of trading. Banks fell along with bond yields as stocks declined for a third-straight day.

Lower bond yields hurt banks because they force down interest rates on mortgages and other kinds of loans.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 4.78 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,373.47. The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 8.76 points, or 0.04 percent, to 20,905.86. The Nasdaq composite rose 0.53 point, or 0.01 percent, to 5,901.53. The Russell 2000 of small-company stocks fell 7.43 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,384.10.

Utility companies gave up some of their recent gains, but most sectors didn’t move much on the lightest trading day of the year. European markets mostly fell after the British government said that next week it will formally begin the process of leaving the European Union.

Sameer Samana, a strategist for the Wells Fargo Investment Institute, said politics may keep investors occupied for the next few weeks as they wait for elections in France and for a European Central Bank meeting, both next month, while legislators in the U.S. debate the Republican health care proposal.

“There’s enough events that will keep markets busy,” Samana said. He added that investors want to see taxoverhaul proposals because they could help corporate profits, but that those aren’t likely to come until the health care bill is dealt with.

The stock market has mostly been quiet this month. Its two big moves were both linked to the Federal Reserve. On March 1, stocks jumped after the central bank signaled it would raise rates. Stocks also climbed Wednesday after the Fed made it clear it will move slowly for the rest of the year.

Bond prices rose, sending yields to their lowest in three weeks. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.46 percent from 2.5 percent.

Wells Fargo shares fell $1.04, or 1.8 percent, to $57.63, and Synchrony Financial gave up 92 cents, or 2.6 percent, to $34.20.

The British pound slipped to $1.2350 from $1.2396 late Friday, and it’s down about 20 percent since Britain voted to leave the EU in late June. The dollar declined to 112.58 yen from 112.70 yen. The euro fell to $1.0733 from $1.0743.

Benchmark U.S. crude declined 56 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $48.22 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, lost 14 cents to $51.62 a barrel in London.

Dominion Diamond climbed $2.28, or 23 percent, to $12.20 after Washington Cos. went public with an offer to buy the diamond-mining company for $13.50 per share, or about $1.1 billion. Dominion Diamond said it is willing to engage in talks but said Washington doesn’t have experience in the diamond industry and questioned the timing of the offer. Washington Cos. said it first made its offer in February and that Dominion Diamond isn’t willing to open its books.

Nektar Therapeutics soared after the company said an experimental pain drug met its goals in a latestage study. Its NKTR-181 is an opioid drug designed to relieve pain without causing euphoria, which the company said can contribute to drug abuse and addiction. It studied NKTR-181 as a treatment for lower back pain. Nektar stock rose $6.61, or 42.7 percent, to $22.11.

Gold rose $3.80 to $1,234 an ounce. Silver picked up 3 cents to $17.44 an ounce. Copper lost 2 cents to $2.67 a pound.