US stocks closed lower last Monday. The close of trade was just two hours to go prior a midnight deadline to avert a federal government shutdown. Meanwhile, major indexes ended September with a solid monthly gain.
Losses were broad and the decline accelerated in late trading. However, the benchmark S&P 500 index still ended up 3% higher for the month and gained 4.7% for the quarter. The NASDAQ increased more than 10% for the quarter which was also its largest quarterly gain since the first quarter of last year.
Funds for thousands of government routine activities were set to expire at midnight. US democrats killed the proposal by the Republican led House of Representatives to delay Obamacare for a year. In return, the funding of the federal government after Monday would be temporarily given.
A shutdown of the US government would have wide-ranging impacts for most assets. Markets might recover if a deal to settle the budget issue were reached quickly. A deal could still be possible before the end of the government's fiscal year at midnight on Monday. However, such possibility was considered unlikely, said a Reuters report.
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