NEW YORK — U.S. stocks closed modestly lower Friday, with the Dow average snapping its eight-day string of gains, as renewed worries over Greek finances and an upcoming vote on health care unnerved investors.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 37.19 points, or 0.35 percent, to 10,741.98. The measure climbed 1.1 percent for the week, its third straight weekly gain, and is up 3.01 percent since Jan. 1.
On Friday, materials and energy were the weakest categories in a broad-based selloff as oil prices retreated near $80 a barrel. Worries about key overseas economies also weighed on the market, which some said was due for a pause after a solid run lately.
The Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index fell 0.51 percent, led by declines in materials and energy. Baker Hughes Inc. shares slid 3.7 percent, while Consol Energy Inc. shares fell nearly 4 percent, and Massey Energy Co. lost 3.4 percent.
“The commodities, like other risky assets, are taking a little bit of a breather,” said Russ Koesterich, managing director of BlackRock’s scientific active equity business. But he said it was encouraging that both stocks and raw materials weren’t declining even more.
“The market has had a big run-up, it’s continuing to defy some of the pessimists, and this happened on a bunch of factors,” including benign inflation readings and a decision by the Federal Reserve to keep its rate target near zero, said Koesterich. “This is helping to keep a floor under stocks.”
Other central banks around the world, however, have become more wary of inflation. On Friday, investors were spooked by the Reserve Bank of India’s move to increase its key lending rate to 5 percent and its borrowing rate to 3.5 percent.
The S&P’s health care sector edged up ahead of an expected vote on health reform.
Trading volume was higher. The increase came on a so-called quadruple witching day, when contracts for stock-index futures, stock-index options, stock options and single-stock futures expire.
