Rally evaporates; stocks end slightly lower
Trader Daniel Leporin, foreground, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Wednesday, March 22, 2017 Credit: AP / Richard Drew
An early rally evaporated on Wall Street and left indexes slightly lower after Republican leaders delayed a vote on President Donald Trump’s health care bill.
Investors worry that the setback Thursday will mean a longer wait for business friendly policies like tax cuts.
Health care and energy stocks fell. Centene fell 4 percent and Baker Hughes lost 2.3 percent.
Google’s parent company, Alphabet, fell 1 percent after several major companies said they will stop advertising on YouTube because their ads were appearing alongside offensive videos.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index closed down 2.5 points, about 0.1 percent, at nearly 2,346.
The Dow Jones industrial average gave up 4.7 points, about 0.02 percent, to close at 20,656.6. The Nasdaq composite slid nearly 4 points, about 0.07 percent, to 5,817.7.
Small-company stocks rose.
