Stocks Opened Lower as Stimulus Talks Stalled

U.S. stocks opened lower on Friday, as traders watched Washington lawmakers hold at an impasse over advancing another round of virus-relief measures. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately fell 130.09 points, or 0.43%, to 29,869.17. The S&P 500 was off 17.45 points, or 0.48%, to 3,650.65. The Nasdaq Composite declined 71.58 points, or 0.58%, to 12,334.23.

Oil futures were little changed Friday, but remained on track for weekly gains as investors take their cue from progress on the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines which may help the economic recovery. West Texas Intermediate crude for January delivery were off 2 cents at $46.76 a barrel. February Brent crude was down 2 cents at 50.24 a barrel.

Prospects for a near-term stimulus bill dimmed further on Thursday. Some Senate Republicans including Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have balked at the $908 billion proposal a bipartisan group of lawmakers put forth last week, with disagreements over liability protections for businesses and the scope of state and local aid remaining key sticking points.

According to new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, producer prices climbed 0.1% month-over-month in November, which was in line with economists’ expectations. Core prices, which exclude food and energy, increased by 0.1%; this compares to economists’ expectation for a 0.2% rise.