US stocks end mostly lower as midday gains slip away
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks finished mostly lower Thursday in another choppy day of trading after a midday rally faded. Industrial and technology companies rose, but smaller companies and chemical makers skidded.
Without any major economic reports or further development on issues like tariffs, stocks drifted up and down. The market was coming off two days of losses, and while stocks briefly moved higher in the middle of the day, they couldn't sustain any momentum.
Agribusiness company Monsanto fell after Bloomberg News reported that U.S. authorities have concerns about its sale to Bayer and might order Bayer to sell more assets. Toymakers Hasbro and Mattel sagged as Toys R Us moved toward shuttering its U.S. stores.