• The S&P 500 and Nasdaq closed out their sixth straight week of gains with a flat session after Janet Yellen signaled the Federal Reserve is set to raise interest rates this month if employment and other economic data hold up.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 2.74 points, or 0.01 percent, to 21,005.71, the S&P 500 gained 1.2 points, or 0.05 percent, to 2,383.12 and the Nasdaq Composite added 9.53 points, or 0.16 percent, to 5,870.75.
• Asian shares and U.S. stock futures dropped on Monday as investors weighed the near-certain prospect of an interest rate hike in the United States this month against news of slower growth in China this year.
Risk appetite also took a hit on rising geopolitical tensions in East Asia, as North Korea fired four ballistic missiles early in the day, while a spat between China and South Korea over missile defense deepened.
U.S. stock futures ESc1 dipped 0.4 percent, a fairly large move for Asian trade. Japan's Nikkei .N225 dropped0.4 percent.
MSCI's broadest dollar-denominated index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS was flat but Seoul shares were down 0.5 percent .KS11 and Australia dipped 0.1 percent .
Reference: Reuters
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