4.15pm: Muted end to double-digit year
US stocks ended with modest losses on the final session of 2021 after a year of repeated records driven by low interest rates and the rollout of coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 59 points, or 0.2% lower at 36,338, while the broader S&P 500 fell 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.6%.
Over the year, the S&P 500 closed at a record 70 times, more than one-quarter of all trading days, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The index rose 27% overall in 2021, its third straight year of double-digit gains and its best run since 1999.
The Dow and Nasdaq also notched up double-digit gains for 2021, adding 19% and 22%, respectively.
12:05pm: Dull end to a hectic year
Major US indices continued to trend downwards after a muted opening on the last session of the year.
As of noon, the Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 0.2%, or 32 points lower at 36,367, while the broader S&P 500 lost 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.20%.
Wells Fargo Investment Institute analysts noted that 2021 was "another year" when US equity markets were strongly supported by "accommodative fiscal and monetary policies."
9:45am: Stocks open quietly on last day of 2021
Wall Street opened softly on Friday morning, the final trading day of the year.
At the 15-minute mark of trading, the S&P 500 was slightly positive, up 0.04% to sit around 4,781 points. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down around 0.05% at 36,376 points, while the Nasdaq dropped 0.09% to sit at 15,727 points.
Following an intraday high on Thursday after hitting its 70th record close of the year Wednesday, the S&P 500 recorded a new all-time high every month this year, making 2021 among its best years ever, according to data.
6:30am: US stocks set for muted open
US stocks look set for a muted open on the last trading day of 2021, indicating a quiet finish to a year of repeated records on Wall Street amid low interest rates and the continued impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccinations.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked down 0.1% on Friday, while those for the broader S&P 500 index and the tech-laden Nasdaq-100 also both edged 0.1% lower.
On Thursday the Dow and S&P 500 both lost 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.2%.
The S&P 500 index is still on course to finish the year about 27% higher, which would be its largest annual percentage gain since 2019. The index also closed at a record level 70 times this year, more than a quarter of all trading days, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
Much of the broader market rally was driven by a small group of massive stocks, such as Apple, Tesla and Microsoft. Microsoft and Tesla shares have each risen more than 50% this year, while Apple has gained more than 30%.
However, investors are likely to be cautious as they eye a number of risks heading into 2022 that could derail the market rally.
The Federal Reserve has set the stage for a series of interest rate increases beginning next spring. US inflation reached a nearly four-decade high last month, raising questions about how many price increases can be absorbed and that couid affect corporate earnings. And rising cases of the Omicron COVID-19 variant are causing some businesses to cut services and hours as workers call in sick.