Global Stocks: U.S. stock indices declined on the last session of 2015

U.S. stock indices declined on the last session of 2015 on Thursday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 178.84 points, or 1.02%, to 17,425.03 (-2.23% over the year). The S&P 500 lost 19.42 points, or 0.94%, to 2,043.94 (-0.73% over the year; its energy sector lost more than 20% in 2015 although it was the only sector, which gained on Thursday). The Nasdaq Composite declined 58.43 points, or 1.15%, to 5,007.41(more than +5.5% over the year).

U.S. stocks were mostly tracking oil in the last two trading weeks of 2015 as uncertainty over Federal Reserve's rates cleared out.

This morning in Asia Hong Kong Hang Seng fell 2.53%, or 554.35, to 21,360.05. China Shanghai Composite Index dropped 4.76%, or 168.39, to 3,370.80. The Nikkei plunged 2.89, or 550.62, to 18,483.09.

Asian stock indices fell amid tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia and weak economic data from China. On Sunday Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic relations with Tehran.

The Markit/Caixin Manufacturing PMI for China declined to 48.2 in December from 48.6 in the previous month falling further into contraction territory. Economists had expected a reading of 49.0. Many experts don't expect China's economic growth to exceed 6.5% in 2016.