Stocks Closed Mostly Lower, Eyed Black Friday Sales

U.S. stocks ended mostly lower as investors were in a shopping mood on Black Friday and Wall
Street eyed the critical start to the Christmas holiday shopping period. The Dow Jones Industrial
Average lost 10.92 points, or 0.07%, to finish at 16,086.41, rising 0.1% for the week and 3.5% for
November. The S&P 500 dipped 1.42 points, or 0.08%, to close at 1,805.81, finishing up less than
0.1% for the week and was up 2.8% for the month. The Nasdaq Composite rose 15.14 points, or
0.37%, to 4,059.89, climbing 1.7% for the week and 3.6% for the month.

Wal-Mart opened its stores at 6 p.m. this year, two hours earlier than last year and smack in the
middle of most families’ Thanksgiving dinners.

Australia blocked a three billion Australian dollar (US$2.7 billion) bid by U.S. agribusiness
giant Archer Daniels Midland Co. ADM -2.99% for local grain handler GrainCorp Ltd. GNC.AU -22.14%
on national interest grounds, raising concern over the new conservative government’s openness to
foreign investment as it seeks to turn the country into a food bowl for Asia.

Euro-area unemployment unexpectedly declined in October in a sign that a nascent recovery is
starting to show its effect on the labor market.