Big Year Ends With a Fizzle

Traders can look back on this year as a successful one, as the Dow surged 16.3% and the S&P 500 advanced more than 13.6%. The Nasdaq was higher by 9.5% for the year.

As the session wrapped up, New York trading won't get under way again until next Wednesday. The market will be closed Monday for the New Year's holiday and Tuesday for the funeral of former President Gerald Ford.

By shutting Jan. 2, the Nasdaq and the NYSE will both be closed for four consecutive days for the first time since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

On the corporate side, Apple (AAPL Quote) remained in the news. The company filed its delayed quarterly report and admitted to falsifying documents on its stock options, but it said that none of its current executives knew about the issue and that CEO Steve Jobs didn't benefit financially.

Shares of Apple rose 4.9% to finish at $84.84. For the year, the stock gained roughly 18%.

Elsewhere, Delta (DALRQ Quote) reported a narrower loss for November than it had in the same month a year ago, and Marsh & McClennan (MMC Quote) is planning to unload its Putnam Investments unit for $3.9 billion, according to a published report.

Meanwhile, phone giant AT&T (T Quote) has offered regulators new concessions in a bid to get its merger with regional carrier BellSouth (BLS Quote) approved before the year ends. The deal is now valued around $85 billion.