Stock gains take early holiday ahead of Fourth

U.S. stocks closed lower yesterday after a swift selloff in the final minutes of a shortened trading session ahead of the Independence Day holiday.

The losses snapped a three-day winning streak for the stock market, wiping out modest gains from earlier in the day.

Technology companies and banks led the market slide, outweighing gains in health care and energy stocks. Gainers slightly outnumbered fallers on the New York Stock Exchange, with small-company stocks faring better than the overall market. Trading volume was lighter than usual going into Wednesday’s U.S. market holiday.

The S&P 500 index fell 13.49 points, or 0.5 percent, to 2,713.22. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 132.36 points, or 0.5 percent, to 24,174.82. The Nasdaq lost 65.01 points, or 0.9 percent, to 7,502.67. Smaller-company stocks bucked the broader market decline. The Russell 2000 index picked up 5.33 points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,660.42.

Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 2.83 percent from 2.87 percent late Monday.

U.S. markets reopen tomorrow, and investors will have no shortage of reasons to snap out of the holiday lull by the end of the week. On Friday the U.S. will start imposing a 25 percent tariff on $34 billion worth of Chinese imports. China is expected to retaliate with its own tariffs.