US stocks fail to ring in new year

WALL STREET began 2005 with a loss yesterday as investors shored up portfolios and abandoned risky positions taken during the post-election rally.

The drop came despite falling oil prices and a better-than-expected sales forecast from Wal-Mart.

While Wall Street has usually opened the new year with a buying spree, investors were picky, favouring large caps with solid balance sheets over small caps and speculative bets.