U.S. stocks retreat following Fed officials' hint to raise rate

U.S. stocks ticked down Friday as investors assessed U.S. Federal Reserve officials' comments on monetary policy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 35.89 points, or 0.19 percent, to 18,867.93. The S&P 500 decreased 5.22 points, or 0.24 percent, to 2,181.90. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 12.46 points, or 0.23 percent, to 5,321.51.

Kansas City Fed President Esther George said the U.S. economy would benefit from the Fed raising rates sooner rather than later, according to the CNBC.

St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said Friday he was leaning towards supporting a rate hike next month and argued that the real question now was the Fed's rate path in 2017.

Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen said Thursday it would be appropriate for the central bank to hike interest rate relatively soon, and warned of the risks of keeping rate low for too long.

Analysts took Fed officials' comments as a clear indication that the U.S. central bank could raise interest rates next month.

According to the CME Group's FedWatch tool Friday, market expectations for a December rate hike were 95.4 percent.

Overseas, European equities closed mildly lower Friday amid a stronger U.S. dollar. German benchmark DAX index at Frankfurt Stock Exchange inched down 0.20 percent, while British benchmark FTSE 100 Index decreased 0.28 percent.

In Asia, Chinese stocks retreated Friday, but registered their sixth consecutive weekly gain thanks to growing signs of a stabilizing economy. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.49 percent to 3,192.86 points.

For the week, the blue-chip Dow edged up 0.1 percent, and broader S&P 500 gained 0.8 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq jumped 1.6 percent. Endit