Yesterday, the Dow lost 51.98 points (0.29%) to finish at 18,086.40, the NASDAQ closed 14.34 points (0.27%) lower at 5,199.82, and the S&P 500 decreased 6.48 points (0.30%) to 2,126.50. The Russell 2000 was down 2.28 points (0.19%) at 1,210.13, and the Wilshire 5000 fell 68.93 points (0.31%) to 22,099.89.

On the NYSE, 3.1 billion shares changed hands, and on the NASDAQ, 2.9 billion shares traded, with 3 declining issues for every 2 advancing issues on both exchanges.

The price of the 10-year Treasury note was up 11/32, decreasing its yield to 1.764%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond increased 25/32, bringing its yield down to 2.522%. 

ON THIS DATE: In 1767, the Mason-Dixon line was agreed upon. It was the boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania. In 1842, Samuel Finley Breese Morse laid his first telegraph cable. In 1867, the U.S. took formal possession of Alaska from Russia. The land was purchased for a total of $7 million dollars (two cents per acre). In 1892, the first long-distance telephone line between Chicago and New York City was opened. In 1943, the first broadcast of “Perry Mason” was presented on CBS Radio. In 1967, the American League granted permission for the A’s to move to Oakland. Also, new franchises were awarded to Kansas City and Seattle. In 1977, Reggie Jackson tied Babe Ruth’s record for hitting three homeruns in a single World Series game. Jackson was only the second player to achieve this. In 1997, a monument honoring U.S. servicewomen, past and present, was dedicated at Arlington National Cemetery.