US: Stock rally stalls amid profit-taking

[NEW YORK] US stocks finished a choppy session lower Monday in a move attributed to profit-taking after mostly gains in the last two weeks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 123.47 points (0.74 per cent) to 16,516.50.

The broad-based S&P 500 dropped 15.82 (0.81 per cent) to 1,932.23, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index shed 32.52 (0.71 per cent) to 4,557.95.

"There's been some profit-taking as we had a good two-week run," said Michael James, managing director of equity trading at Wedbush Securities.

"Selling has brought more selling as a lot of traders are really poised to take profits at any fundamental pullback."

US oil prices climbed 3.0 per cent on Chinese stimulus measures and calming signals from Saudi Arabia on the prospects for limiting volatility.

AFP