US close: Stocks inch higher as Opec continues to tantalise
Encouraging economic data helped eclipse a sharp drop in oil prices to help US stocks inch higher on Tuesday, though investors continued to hang on every word emanating around the meeting of major oil producing countries in Vienna.
The Dow Jones closed up 23.70 points or 0.12% to 19,121.60, with the S&P adding 2.94 or 0.13% to 2,204.66 and the Nasdaq composite topping the 5,400 intra-day high but closing at 5,379.92 for a gain of 11.11 points or 0.21%.
As Wednesday's Opec meeting dominated headlines, oil prices slid as non-member Russia confirmed it will not attend the cartel’s meeting in the Austrian capital, although it said a meeting of the group and non-affiliated producers could take place at a later stage.
Among other gloomy comments, Indonesia’s energy minister said he was “not optimistic” that Opec would agree to cap production.
Although an initial consensus on trimming production to support the oil price seemed to have been agreed, IG analyst Josh Mahony said a deal now felt "as far away as ever, with members continuing to conduct an intricate game of political poker, utilising the media to further their cause. It is becoming increasingly evident that some of the more prominent Opec members care more about holding on to market share than helping raise the price of oil. Hence despite agreeing to a production cut, we have seen the likes of Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Iran all continue to raise production."
Naeem Aslam at Think Markets even warned the lack of an Opec deal could hit US stocks so hard the S&P 500 could drop well below 2,100.
“If there is no deal, the Saudis are going to make sure they dump the market with as much oil as possible because now the real trade war will begin and they won't care about anything,” he said, suggesting oil could be sent down to the mid-$20s.
West Texas Intermediate dropped 3.9% to $45.26 while Brent crude was 3.8% weaker at $46.46 per barrel by the early evening in New York.
But this news, or lack of it, was counterbalanced by an upward revision in the growth rate of the US economy for the third quarter, thanks mostly to stronger retail sales.
Gross domestic product was shown by the Commerce Department to have grown 3.2% on the same period last year, up from 2.9% in the initial reading and faster than the 3.0% expected.
"Critically, we have seen household spending prove the primary driver of growth, which could well continue into Q4 given the shopping fest instigated on Black Friday," IG's Mahony added.
US consumer confidence also impressed, the Conference Board's headline index jumping to a nine-year high of 107.1 from 100.8 as both expectations and current conditions both rose sharply to help beat the 101.5 consensus forecast.
However, Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell said neither the main stock indices nor the dollar reacted much after the GDP news, probably due to both having mostly priced in December’s anticipated interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve.
In company news, shares in Tiffany & Co sparkled as the jeweller reported a surprise jump in sales for first time in two years, as Japan and China offset the sales decline in the US.
Whereas shares in Shoe Carnival stumbled after its quarterly results released late on Monday missed expectations and the retailer cut its annual guidance.
Dow Jones - Risers
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $157.59 3.60%
Boeing Co. (BA) $151.64 1.25%
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $31.92 1.20%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $61.09 0.79%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $78.92 0.77%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $99.67 0.71%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $211.75 0.67%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $62.19 0.63%
E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (DD) $71.20 0.44%
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $108.84 0.36%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $41.15 -1.44%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $109.34 -1.05%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $120.69 -0.94%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $94.04 -0.91%
American Express Co. (AXP) $71.49 -0.89%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $129.62 -0.78%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $50.63 -0.74%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $85.90 -0.66%
General Electric Co. (GE) $31.05 -0.64%
International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) $163.53 -0.60%
S&P 500 - Risers
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $125.59 5.20%
Centene Corp. (CNC) $57.60 3.88%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $157.59 3.60%
AbbVie Inc (ABBV) $61.59 3.58%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $81.37 3.35%
Tiffany & Co. (TIF) $80.60 3.15%
Praxair Inc. (PX) $122.20 2.94%
Aetna Inc. (AET) $132.03 2.84%
Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $70.14 2.68%
H&R Block Inc. (HRB) $22.38 2.57%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Mallinckrodt Plc Ordinary Shares (MNK) $52.44 -9.10%
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (DO) $15.71 -6.71%
Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX) $14.97 -5.13%
Baxter International Inc. (BAX) $44.76 -3.97%
Hess Corp. (HES) $49.06 -3.82%
Marathon Oil Corp. (MRO) $14.95 -3.80%
First Solar Inc. (FSLR) $29.95 -3.73%
Alcoa Corporation (AA) $29.73 -3.66%
Allstate Corp (The) (ALL) $69.63 -3.35%
Transocean Ltd. (RIG) $11.03 -3.33%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $125.59 5.20%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $26.85 3.95%
Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $280.49 3.57%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $81.37 3.35%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $57.69 2.74%
Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $70.14 2.68%
Paychex Inc. (PAYX) $59.46 2.53%
Ctrip.Com International Ltd. Ads (CTRP) $45.87 2.53%
Discovery Communications Inc. Class C (DISCK) $27.12 2.03%
Akamai Technologies Inc. (AKAM) $67.28 1.68%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA) $189.57 -3.34%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $19.42 -2.85%
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $55.63 -2.32%
Cerner Corp. (CERN) $49.77 -2.16%
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $86.70 -1.88%
Mylan Inc. (MYL) $36.06 -1.85%
TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP) $49.30 -1.75%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $85.65 -1.44%
Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (CHKP) $81.59 -1.14%
Whole Foods Market Inc. (WFM) $30.61 -1.07%