(Reuters) - The S&P 500 ended lower on Friday as investors digested implications of a U.S. inflation report for the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy and adjusted their portfolios on the last day of a weak third quarter for stocks.
REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File PhotoThe benchmark S&P 500 also posted its biggest monthly percentage drop of the year.
The data revealed a “better than expected but still elevated inflation picture,” said Eric Freedman, chief investment officer at U.S. Bank Asset Management.
Meanwhile, Freedman said, “we are at quarter end, and with quarter end comes all sorts of activities across both the stock and bond markets.”According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 lost 11.37 points, or 0.26%, to end at 4,288.33 points, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 18.05 points, or 0.18%, to 13,224.52.
Among S&P 500 sectors, energy and financials declined sharply.
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