NEW YORK — The stock market closed mostly lower today after investors were unimpressed by a rating agency’s brighter outlook on the U.S. government’s credit rating.
Stocks got an early boost today from news that Standard & Poor’s raised its outlook for the U.S. government’s debt, citing stronger finances and a recovering economy.
The gains didn’t last long, and by early afternoon the market was drifting between slight gains and losses.
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The Dow Jones industrial average fell nine points to close at 15,238, a loss of 0.1 percent.
The S&P 500 index fell a fraction to 1,642, less than 0.1 percent.
The Nasdaq composite edged up four points to 3,473, or 0.1 percent.
More stocks fell than rose on the New York Stock Exchange. Trading volume was very thin at 2.8 billion shares.