Stock indexes struggle to a mixed finish
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks struggled to a mixed finish as some of investors' worst fears about escalating trade tensions ebbed.
The market spent much of the day lower Wednesday following the departure of Gary Cohn, the top economic adviser to President Donald Trump. Cohn had opposed the administration's planned tariffs on steel and aluminum.
Stocks pared some of their losses after the White House indicated there might be exceptions to the tariffs for Canada, Mexico and other countries.
Caterpillar, a construction equipment maker that faces higher prices for steel, lost 1.5 percent.
Technology and health care stocks rose.
The Standard & Poor's 500 fell 1 point to 2,726.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 82 points, or 0.1 percent, to 24,801. The Nasdaq rose 24 points, or 0.3 percent, to 7,396.
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