US: Stocks end lower as Trump signs tax cut into law

[NEW YORK] Wall Street stocks dipped on Friday as President Donald Trump signed a long-awaited tax cut into law ahead of the Christmas holiday.

Mr Trump moved up a bill signing originally slated for January to fulfill a promise to deliver tax cuts by Christmas. US stocks had risen to repeat records earlier in the month in anticipation of the measure, but began to sag this week as the proposal cleared the final hurdles in Washington.

"It's a case of 'buy the rumour, sell the news,'" said Quincy Krosby, chief market strategist at Prudential Annuities.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.1 per cent to end the week at 24,754.06.

The broad-based S&P 500 dipped 0.1 per cent to close at 2,683.34, and the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index also shed 0.1 per cent to 6,959.96.

Dow member Nike lost 2.4 per cent after reporting second-quarter profit fell nine percent to US$767 million. The sports apparel and sneaker giant reported a drop in North American sales and cautioned that profit margins would be pressured in the upcoming quarter.

Biotech company Celgene shed 1.4 per cent after disclosing disappointing results for a trial of its revlimid treatment for follicular lymphoma.

Long Island Iced Tea, which is renaming itself Long Blockchain Corp, sank 13.0 per cent as some companies connected to cryptocurrencies fell with bitcoin prices.

Analysts reported low trading volume ahead of the Christmas holiday Monday when markets will be closed.

AFP