US equity markets relinquished much of their earlier session gains into the close of trading albeit the benchmark indices still sit within striking distance of their record highs - Dow down -52-points or -0.19%, with gains in Microsoft Corp (up +1.84%) and UnitedHealth Group Inc (+0.97%) weren’t enough to offset losses in Boeing Co (down -0.51%), Home Depot Inc (-1.17%) and Walt Disney Co (-2.56%). The broader S&P500 settled flat, with gains for the Health Care (up +0.47%) and Utilities (+0.36%) sectors offset by falls for the Industrials (down -0.50%) and Financials (-0.4%) sectors. The NASDAQ inched +0.07% higher. Tonight's AEST trading session marks "quadruple witching", the simultaneous expiry of stock-index futures, stock-index options, stock options and stock futures, which can stoke some volatility (particularly late in the session).
