Stocks stalled to start November, as prospects of a continually hawkish Fed weighed on Wall Street ahead of the central bank's interest rate decision tomorrow. The Dow shed 79 points, while both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq also settled modestly in the red, as all three major indexes shrugged off a cooling 10-year Treasury yield. Last seen at 4.06%, bond yields took a breather after today's jobs and manufacturing data. 

The Dow Jones Average (DJI - 32,653.20) dropped 79.8 points or 0.2% for the day. JPMorgan Chase (JPM) led the gainers, adding 1.8%, while Apple (AAPL) paced the laggards with a 1.8% loss.

The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 3,856.10) shed 15.9 points or 0.4% for the day. The Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 10,890.85) fell 97.3 points, or 0.9% for the session.

Lastly, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX - 25.81) lost 0.07 points or 0.3% for the session, and lost 18.2% for the month.

OIL PRICES POP AS TENSION RISES OVERSEAS

Oil prices popped for the first time in three sessions. Gains were capped though, by geopolitical tensions with Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. December-dated crude shed $1.84, or 2.1%, to finish at $88.37 per barrel.

Gold prices climbed today, as a retreating U.S. dollar and cooling bond yields gave the safe-haven asset some reprieve. December-dated gold added $9, or 0.6%, to settle at $1,649.70 an ounce.

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