US stocks finish flat on mixed data
An Oct. 8, 2014, file photo of the New York Stock Exchange in New York. US stocks finished little changed Monday, Nov. 3, following mixed economic data as markets paused after last week’s records. AP
NEW YORK–US stocks finished little changed Monday following mixed economic data as markets paused after last week’s records.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 24.28 points (0.14 percent) to 17,366.24.
The broad-based S&P 500 dipped 0.24 (0.01 percent) to 2,017.81, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 8.17 (0.18 percent) to 4,638.91.
The Institute for Supply Management’s purchasing managers’ index for October manufacturing rose to 59.0, with companies saying activity is picking up more than expected going into the yearend holiday shopping season.
But the Commerce Department reported Monday that US construction spending fell a second straight month in September, for a 0.4 percent annual decline, surprising analysts who expected a pickup.
“It’s not surprising (investors) are digesting a little bit after the highs” last week, said Mace Blicksilver, director of Marblehead Asset Management.
Chinese online vending giant Alibaba surged 3.25 percent to a new high, one day ahead of its first earnings after IPO.
Social messaging service Twitter, meanwhile, sank 3.0 percent, and Facebook lost 1.5 percent.
Petroleum industry stocks suffered as US oil prices fell to their lowest level since June 2012.
Dow members ExxonMobil and Chevron lost 1.5 percent and 2.6 percent, respectively, while oil services companies Diamond Offshore and Baker Hughes fell 5.7 percent and 2.0 percent.
Covance shot up 25.9 percent on news that it will be acquired by Laboratory Corp. of America for $5.6 billion to create a giant in healthcare diagnostics. LabCorp fell 7.4 percent.
Sapient soared 42.0 percent on news it will be acquired by French public relations giant Publicis for $3.7 billion.
Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury rose to 2.35 percent from 2.34 percent Friday, while the 30-year rose to 3.07 percent from 3.06 percent Friday. Bond prices and yields move inversely.
