U.S. stocks end lower amid fresh drop in oil

U.S. stocks finished lower Wednesday as oil prices dropped sharply following a rise in U.S. crude inventories. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 117.24 points, or 0.7%, lower at 17,603.74, while the S&P 500 index closed down 15.01 points, or 0.7%, at 2,063.35. Meanwhile the Nasdaq Composite index was off 42.09 points, or 0.8%, to end at 5,065.85. A fresh slump in West Texas Intermediate crude-oil futures trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange , which settled down 3.4% to $36.60 a barrel, helped fuel pessimism among investors with only one trading day remaining in 2015.

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