Major Asian stock markets, including Tokyo and Seoul, were closed Wednesday for the yearend and New Year’s holidays, while trading was mixed in those bourses that remained open.
In China, the Hang Seng index dipped 0.5% in early trading to 25,715.16, while the Shanghai Composite rose less than 0.1% to 3,966.39. The Taiex in Taiwan jumped 0.7% to 28,893.59.
In Australia, Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.1% to 8,706.40.
Tokyo trading was set to be closed for the New Year’s holidays on Thursday and Friday and scheduled to reopen on Monday. In South Korea, trading was scheduled to be closed on Thursday.
Trading will remain open Wednesday on Wall Street but will be closed Thursday. Trading volume was thin Tuesday.
The S&P 500 fell 9.50 points, or 0.1%, to 6,894.24. Even with three straight days of small losses, the S&P 500 is on track for an annual gain of more than 17%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 94.87 points, or 0.2%, to 48,367.06. The Nasdaq composite fell 55.27 points, or 0.2%, to 23,419.08.
The biggest weights on the market remained technology companies, especially those focused on advancements for artificial intelligence.
Nvidia fell 0.4% and Apple fell 0.2%. Both companies have outsized values that have a greater overall impact on the market’s broader direction.
On the winning side, Facebook parent Meta Platforms rose 1.1%. The company is buying artificial intelligence startup Manus as it continues an aggressive push to amp up AI offerings across its platforms.
The more notable action was in the commodities markets. The price of gold rose 1.4% to 4,386.30 per ounce. Silver prices gained 10.9%. Prices for gold and silver slumped Monday when the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, one of the largest trading floors for commodities, asked traders to put up more cash to make bets on precious metals. Prices for both metals have surged in 2025 on a mix of economic worries and supply deficits.
Copper rose 4.4% and is up more 40% for the year on strong demand. The base metal is critical to global energy infrastructure, and demand is expected to keep growing as the development of artificial intelligence technology puts more of a strain on data centers and the energy grid.
In energy trading, U.S. crude fell 7 cents to $57.88 per barrel. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, slipped 7 cents to $61.26 per barrel.
Treasury yields were mixed in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.12% from 4.11% late Monday. The yield on the two-year Treasury, which moves more closely with expectations for what the Federal Reserve will do, held steady at 3.45% from late Monday.
Overall, Treasury yields have fallen significantly through the year, partly because of the market’s expectations for a shift in interest rate policy at the Fed. The central bank cut interest rates three times late in 2025, most recently at its meeting earlier in December.
The central bank has been dealing with a more complex economic picture. Consumer confidence has been weakening throughout the year as inflation squeezes consumers and businesses. The continued impact of a wide-ranging U.S.-led trade war threatens to add more fuel to inflation.
Inflation remains stubbornly high while the jobs market slows down. The Fed can cut interest rates to help the economy weather a slower jobs market. But that could add more fuel to inflation, which is still solidly above the Fed’s 2% target. Hotter inflation could stunt economic growth.
The Fed has signaled more caution moving forward. Minutes from its December meeting reflect the divisions within the central bank as it deals with uncertainty about the threats facing the economy.
Wall Street is betting that the Fed will hold interest rates steady at its next meeting in January.
In currency trading, the U.S. dollar inched up to 156.39 Japanese yen from 156.36 yen. The euro cost $1.1745, little changed from $1.1744.
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AP Business Writer Damian J. Troise contributed to this report.
