* FLIR exceeds $ 8 million acquisition agreement
* Tesla shares hit record highs in 2020 strong deliveries
* The CBOE volatility index reaches a maximum of two weeks (updates will be closed, add a new comment)
NEW YORK, Jan. 4 (Reuters) – Wall Street shares closed sharply on Monday, falling from all-time highs on the first trading day of the year as risk appetite eased amid the upcoming election elections in Georgia and the persistent increase in coronavirus cases.
The Dow, which hit a record early in the session along with the S&P 500, was also dragged down by a more than 4% drop in Boeing Co shares after Bernstein downgraded its rating to “low performance. “, citing concerns about cash flow.
The three main indices reached two-week lows, with record highs at the Dow and the S&P 500 that widened the 2020 rally driven by monetary stimulus and the start of vaccine deployment.
Meanwhile, the fate of U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s agenda, including the rewriting of the tax code, increased stimulus and spending on infrastructure, depends heavily on Tuesday’s twin races in the Senate, in the field of battle of the state of Georgia, which will determine the control of the chamber.
The Wall Street Fear Gauge touched a two-week high on Monday.
“Shares are retreating from an impressive year of gains,” said Brian Reynolds, chief market strategist at Reynolds Strategy.
“It simply came to our notice then. We will probably end 2021 with a virus that could be under control at that time. The way we get from start to finish will be filled with frequent setbacks because people will look at the headlines in the short term, ”he added.
Total U.S. deaths from COVID-19 have reached more than 350,000.
Almost all S&P sectors fell, as real estate, utilities and industry recorded the strongest percentage decline. Discretionary materials and consumers reached all-time highs in early operations.
Unofficially, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 387.92 points, or 1.27%, to 30,218.56, the S&P 500 lost 56.08 points, or 1.49%, to 3,699.99, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 191.23 points, or 1.48%, to 12,697.06.
“Investors are at a point where they want to breathe as they evaluate the different things that will come in the new year,” said Lindsey Bell, chief investment strategist at Ally Invest in Charlotte, North Carolina.
In terms of data, U.S. manufacturing activity grew at the fastest pace in more than six years in December, according to a survey released Monday. It comes as a result of factory activity surveys in Europe and Asia earlier in the day.
Some investors are cautious about the pace of economic growth, as U.S. unemployment claims remain stubbornly high, while last month a new round of pandemic-related restrictions and a new variant of the coronavirus have overshadowed to the prospects.
Shares of Tesla Inc. expanded a meteoric concentration to raise the record after the electric car maker reported better-than-expected vehicle deliveries in 2020.
Shares of FLIR Systems Inc. jumped after Teledyne Technologies Inc. agreed to buy the thermal imaging camera supplier for $ 8 billion in cash and shares. Teledyne’s shares also fell. (Report by Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss; Edited by Marguerita Choy)