Banks take hit as 7-day rally ends

Dollar reaches 13-year high as markets close slightly lower

NEW YORK — U.S. stocks finished barely lower Wednesday as banks return some of the huge gains they’ve made since the presidential election last week, but technology and consumer stocks climbed. The dollar continued to appreciate against other currencies and reached its highest mark in 13 years.

Banks took the biggest losses as a seven-day rally in that sector petered out. Industrial companies, also big gainers since the election, traded lower as well. The price of oil gave back some of its enormous gain from the day before. Graphics processor maker Nvidia and household names like Apple and Microsoft led technology companies higher. Rising stocks outnumbered decliners.

The dollar has been very strong in recent years, just not this strong, and it’s been pretty stable compared to other currencies. But in the wake of the election, investors think the U.S. economy might grow a bit faster and inflation might pick up.

“What’s pushed the dollar higher here in the short term is with the Trump win, particularly combined with (Republicans) holding on to the Senate,” said Scott Wren, a senior global equity strategist at the Wells Fargo Investment Institute. Still, Wren doesn’t think the dollar will rise much further.

The Dow Jones industrial average slid 54.92 points, or 0.3 percent, to 18,868.14. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index lost 3.45 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,176.94. The Nasdaq composite picked up 18.96 points, or 0.4 percent, to 5,294.58.

After a long losing streak before the election, the Dow had risen for seven days in a row through Tuesday and set several all-time highs. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq have also made large gains and are near the records they set this fall.

JPMorgan Chase led banks lower as it fell $1.96, or 2.5 percent, to $77.40 and Morgan Stanley lost 81 cents, or 2 percent, to $39.19. Banks are coming off their best single week since the financial crisis as investors hope for higher interest rates and more profits from lending, as well as cutbacks in regulations that could boost bank profits.

The ICE U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the dollar against six other currencies, rose to its highest level since April of 2003. The dollar is rising in part because investors think the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at a faster pace in response to inflation stemming from the increased spending that President-elect Donald Trump has proposed.

A stronger dollar hurts U.S. companies that do a lot of business overseas because it makes their products more expensive, and it affects their earnings when they are translated from other currencies back into U.S. dollars. However it makes imported goods cheaper for consumers in the U.S.

The dollar slipped to 109.15 Japanese yen from 109.32 yen late Tuesday. The euro slid to $1.0681 from $1.0718.

Technology companies moved upward as they continued a rally from a day earlier. Graphics processor maker Nvidia rose $5.44, or 6.3 percent, to $91.63 after it announced a collaboration with Microsoft, and Apple picked up $2.93, or 2.7 percent, to $110.04.

Tech stocks had weakened since the election. Trump’s policies might affect their sales in China and other key markets, and a big surge this summer had brought some technology stocks to all-time highs.

Retailer Target raised its profit forecast and its sales projections for the third quarter with the holiday season approaching. That came as the retailer gave a strong third-quarter report, as it put more emphasis on low prices after it stumbled in the second quarter. The stock gained $4.59, or 6.4 percent, to $76.03.

TJX, the parent of TJ Maxx and Marshalls, reported a bigger profit and better sales than investors expected and its stock gained $2.90, or 3.9 percent, to $76.39. That helped lead consumer stocks higher.