U.S. equities retreated on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average declining 0.21% to close lower as broad sector weakness offset gains in select blue-chip names. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite also ended in negative territory, reflecting a cautious tone across major benchmarks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 73.78 points to 34,853.14, extending losses from earlier in the session. The S&P 500 slipped 0.02% to 5,180.70, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.08% to 16,426.87. Market breadth on the New York Stock Exchange showed falling stocks outpacing advancers by 1,465 to 1,245, with 98 issues unchanged. On the Nasdaq, decliners led advancers 1,949 to 1,421, with 206 stocks ending flat.
Among Dow components, Honeywell International led gains with a 2.31% rise to $220.67, followed by Caterpillar at $821.93 and Apple at $313.45. On the downside, Nike fell 2.25% to $38.59, extending a five-year low, while Merck declined 2.14% to $153.10 and International Business Machines dropped 1.84% to $229.87.
The S&P 500 saw Arista Networks advance 5.92% to $202.25, CH Robinson Worldwide rise 5.62% to $151.73 and Williams Companies gain 4.68% to $74.41. Losses were led by Moderna, down 5.77% to $149.66, GoDaddy, which fell 4.26% to $95.54, and Eli Lilly, which declined 3.59% to $1,189.41.
The Nasdaq Composite featured outsized moves in smaller-cap names, with Cre8 Enterprise surging 162.93% to $6.81, YY Group Holding up 85.65% to $2.13 and Expion360 gaining 74.00% to $9.17. Decliners included Greenland Mines, which dropped 48.09% to $5.04, Wetour Robotics, down 38.96% to $17.28, and Xiao I Corp, which fell 38.58% to $0.81.
Commodities ended mixed, with gold futures for December delivery down 1.05% at $4,645.00 per troy ounce and West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery falling 0.69% to $81.79 per barrel. Brent crude for November delivery declined 0.93% to $86.46 per barrel. The U.S. Dollar Index futures rose 0.23% to 99.07, while the EUR/USD pair was little changed at 1.17 and USD/JPY edged up 0.09% to 159.32.
