Financial Markets                      12/29 09:32

   

   NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks slipped in morning trading on Wall Street Monday to 
kick off another holiday-shortened week.

   The S&P 500 fell 0.4%. With just three trading days left in 2025, the 
benchmark index is still up more than 17% for the year and it remains on track 
for its eighth monthly gain in a row.

   The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 144 points, or 0.3%, as of 10:01 a.m. 
Eastern. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.6%.

   Big technology stocks with outsized valuations were among the heaviest 
weights on the market. Nvidia fell 2% and Broadcom fell 1.3%.

   Energy stocks gained ground along with rising oil prices. U.S. benchmark 
crude jumped 2.4% to $58.11 per barrel. The price of Brent crude, the 
international standard, rose 2.2% to $61.56 a barrel.

   Exxon Mobil rose 0.9%.

   Gold prices pulled back after recent sharp gains. The price of gold slumped 
3.5%, though prices for the precious metal are still up about 66% for the year.

   Wall Street faces another short week in the final stretch of 2025. Markets 
in the U.S. will be closed on Thursday for New Year's Day.

   Treasury yields fell in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury 
fell to 4.12% from 4.13% late Friday.

   Markets in Europe and Asia were mixed. Shares in Taiwan were higher even 
after China's military said it was conducting drills around the self-governed 
island that Beijing claims as its territory. Taiwan's benchmark Taiex gained 
0.9%, but the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gave up early gains, falling 0.7%.

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   Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this story.

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