NEW YORK, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks finished mixed on Friday as market sentiment was dented amid soaring COVID-19 infections across the nation.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 179.03 points, or 0.57 percent, to 30,996.98. The S&P 500 fell 11.60 points, or 0.30 percent, to 3,841.47. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 12.15 points, or 0.09 percent, to 13,543.06.
Eight of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in red, with financials down 0.72 percent, leading the laggards. Real estate rose 0.31 percent, the best-performing group.
U.S.-listed Chinese companies traded mostly lower with seven of the top 10 stocks by weight in the S&P U.S. Listed China 50 index ending the day on a downbeat note.
Spiraling COVID-19 infections continue to present a headwind.
The United States has registered more than 24.7 million confirmed cases with related deaths exceeding 412,000 as of Friday afternoon, showed a tally by Johns Hopkins University.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday unveiled his national strategy for addressing the COVID-19 pandemic as the country endures record levels of infections and deaths.
Less than a week ahead of inauguration, Biden unveiled a 1.9-trillion-dollar COVID-19 relief bill, indicating the urgency to fight the raging pandemic and bolster the ravaged economy amid surging coronavirus cases. Enditem
