Stocks close lower as Wall Street watches Ukraine tensions

Stocks closed lower on Wall Street Monday as the U.S. moved to close its embassy in Ukraine amid heightened geopolitical tensions over the thousands of Russian troops that have been amassing on the border. The S&P 500 fell 0.4% after having been down as much as 1.2%. Financial, health care and energy companies were among the biggest weights dragging the market lower. The broader market took a sharp turn lower Friday after the White House warned that Russia could invade Ukraine soon. European markets fell sharply and crude oil prices rose. The yield on the 10-year note rose to 2%.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

Stocks on Wall Street fell in afternoon trading Monday as the U.S. moved to close its embassy in Ukraine amid heightened geopolitical tensions over the thousands of Russian troops that have been amassing on the border.

The S&P 500 fell 0.3% as of 3:35 p.m. Eastern, paring a large swath of its losses from earlier in the afternoon, when the U.S. said it is closing its embassy in Ukraine and moving all remaining staffers there to a city near the Polish border. The move comes as diplomatic efforts continued Monday in a bid to head off what U.S. officials have warned could be an imminent Russian attack on Ukraine.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 155 points, or 0.4%, to 34,592. It had been down 433 points. The Nasdaq also bounced back from a midafternoon slide and was up 0.2%. Smaller company stocks, which had been on pace for gains, fell. The Russell 2000 slid 0.4%

Financial, health care and energy stocks were among the biggest weights dragging the market lower. JPMorgan fell 1%, Moderna slid 11.2% and Exxon Mobil dropped 1.9%.

Bond yields rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 1.99% from 1.94% late Friday.

The market slide adds to losses from a...