NEW YORK (AP) — Stock indexes edged higher in afternoon trading Wednesday despite big declines in retailers and energy companies. The price of oil fell.
KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average picked up 32 points, or 0.2 percent, to 17,790 as of 12:45 p.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose four points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,085. The Nasdaq composite added 26 points, or 0.5 percent, to 5,108. All three indexes were lower in early trading.
MACY’S HIT: The department store chain reported sales for the third quarter that were lower than analysts were expecting. The company, which also owns Bloomingdale’s, cut its profit forecast for the year, announced more store closures and said it won’t form a real estate investment trust to get more revenue from its properties. Macy’s plunged $6.44, or 13.7 percent, to $40.58, on pace for its biggest one-day drop since 2008.
RETAIL SKIDS: Retailers were sharply lower. Citi Investment Research analyst Paul Lejuez said fewer people bought winter clothes like boots and coats in the third quarter because the weather was warm. That meant they were less likely to go shopping for clothes at all, so inventories built up and discounts increased. That’s a troubling sign with the holiday shopping season coming up.
“That’s bad for anybody that competes against Macy’s,” he said.
Kohl’s fell $3.06, 6.7 percent, to $42.54 and Nordstrom dropped $1.92, or 3 percent, to $62.81. Urban Outfitters fell $1.75, or 6.1 percent, to $26.96. PVH Corp., the company behind the Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger brands, lost $4.86, or 5.2 percent, to $88.08.
CHINA FACTOR: China’s government says retail sales growth edged up in October, suggesting economic growth has stabilized even though factory output and investment got weaker. E-commerce giant Alibaba said it smashed records during the “Singles Day” holiday. Late in the shopping day, Alibaba said orders were around $12.6 billion.
NOT ALARMED: Security company ADT jumped $1.19, or 3.7 percent, to $33.74 after its fiscal fourth quarter profit surpassed analysts’ estimates.
DRINKING TO THE DEAL: The two largest beer makers in the world finalized their deal to combine. The joining of AB InBev and SABMiller brings together brands including Budweiser, Corona, Grolsch and Stella Artois. The combined company will produce about a third of the world’s beer.
As part of the agreement, SABMiller will sell its 58 percent stake in a joint venture in the U.S., Molson Coors, for $12 billion. AB InBev rose $2.40, or 2 percent, to $120.75 and Molson Coors gained $2.66, or 3 percent, to $90.97.
ENERGY: Oil prices dropped almost 3 percent, dragging down energy stocks. Price Futures Group analyst Phil Flynn said oil prices are falling because of a report that showed a big buildup in U.S. crude supplies. The American Petroleum Institute said supplies grew by 6.3 million barrels, a number that was far larger than analysts expected.
The U.S. government will release its own report on Thursday. The Energy Information Administration report usually comes out Wednesday, but is delayed because of the Veteran’s Day holiday.
“The market’s going to be looking very closely for signs that US output is going to start to fall and we’ll be looking for signs that demand is going up,” Flynn said.
U.S. crude slid $1.14, or 2.6 percent, to $43.07 a barrel in New York and Brent crude, which is used to price international oils, slid $1.28, or 2.7 percent, to $46.82.
Marathon Oil fell $1.42, or 7.6 percent, to $17.36 and Apache slid $3.54, or 6.6 percent, to $49.77.
CURRENCIES, BONDS: The dollar slipped to 122.99 yen from 123.25 yen. The euro rose to $1.0731 from $1.0707. U.S. bond trading was closed for Veteran’s Day.
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