US midday: Stocks flat despite reports of Russian troops in Ukraine
- Russian troops reported inside Ukraine
- Oil inventories drop by 2.1m barrels a day
- Treasury yields slip lower
Dow Jones Industrials: 0.08%
Nasdaq Composite: 0.01%
S&P 500: 0.00%
US stocks were flat-lining on Wednesday afternoon as investors took a breather after indices hit record levels on the previous day.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged higher by 18 points to 17,125 while the S&P 500 was flat at the 2,000 point mark in a lacklustre day in terms of news-flow. That came despite a report in The New York Times that Russian troops had engaged in fighting inside of Ukraine.
Of the few items of economic data due out, analysts said EIA crude oil stock figures were probably the most notable as they could impact crude prices.
Craig Erlam at Alpari UK said: "We've seen plenty of volatility in oil prices recently, with geopolitical events putting upward pressure on prices and falling global demand driving them in the other direction.
"The latter is winning the battle at this stage, despite the occasional spikes, and if we see further evidence today that demand is on the decline, we could see that continue."
In the event, the Energy Information Administration (EIA), the Department of Energy's statistical arm, reported that US commercial crude oil inventories fell by 2.1m barrels from the previous week.
Aircraft from the United Arab Emirates and Egypt attacked militia forces in Libya in the past week, the Pentagon's spokesman said, opposing the intervention.
"We discourage other nations from taking part in Libya's issues through violence," spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby told reporters yesterday. "We want the issues solved in Libya to be done peacefully and through good governance and politics."
Meanwhile, the US Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the 2014 US public deficit would now reach the equivalent of 2.9% of gross domestic product (GDP), falling to 2.6% next year.
Iconic jewellery store chain Tiffany & Co unveiled a 16% rise in second-quarter profit led by stronger demand from the Americas and Asia and raised its profit forecast, while Smith & Wesson reported lower earnings.
Shares in Facebook were downgraded to 'neutral' from 'buy' at broker Janney Montgomery.
The value of equities globally has soared from $25trn in March 2009 to $66trn as of yesterday's close. Stocks were valued at $63trn at the 2007 peak, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
MannKind Corp gained 2.6% after broker Jefferies recommended buying the stock.
Industrial conglomerate United Technologies reaffirmed its forecast for earnings per share this year of between $6.75 and $6.85. The company also raised the size of its share repurchase programme to $1.35bn from $1.25bn.
From a sector standpoint the largest gains were being seen in the following industrial groups: tires (1.44%), coal (1.13%) and computer hardware (0.88%).
Front month West Texas crude futures are edging lower by 0.18% to $93.68 per barrel on the NYMEX.
US 10-year Treasury yields are now slipping by three basis points to 2.37%.
S&P 500 - Risers
Best Buy Co. Inc. (BBY) $31.42 +5.44%
Staples Inc. (SPLS) $11.38 +2.94%
Whole Foods Market Inc. (WFM) $39.41 +2.37%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $86.93 +2.13%
Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $22.69 +2.07%
Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $108.28 +1.89%
Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (GT) $25.59 +1.85%
Humana Inc. (HUM) $127.34 +1.83%
Helmerich & Payne Inc. (HP) $103.59 +1.61%
Pinnacle West Capital Corp. (PNW) $56.40 +1.51%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Garmin Ltd. (GRMN) $55.54 -3.34%
Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) $50.60 -3.08%
Graham Holdings Co. (GHC) $700.18 -2.71%
TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP) $101.88 -2.52%
Pioneer Natural Resources Co. (PXD) $206.17 -2.45%
Halliburton Co. (HAL) $68.55 -1.80%
Tesoro Corp. (TSO) $63.67 -1.68%
Total System Services Inc. (TSS) $31.27 -1.51%
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $169.68 -1.50%
Facebook Inc. (FB) $74.94 -1.34%
Dow Jones I.A - Risers
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $86.93 +2.13%
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $29.51 +1.03%
AT&T Inc. (T) $34.73 +0.67%
General Electric Co. (GE) $26.18 +0.65%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $108.63 +0.52%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $94.68 +0.51%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $49.44 +0.40%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $128.63 +0.30%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $60.38 +0.29%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $91.86 +0.25%
Dow Jones I.A - Fallers
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $109.04 -0.58%
International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) $192.01 -0.51%
3M Co. (MMM) $143.98 -0.43%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $103.06 -0.37%
Boeing Co. (BA) $128.19 -0.32%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $177.35 -0.31%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $44.87 -0.30%
E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (DD) $65.97 -0.29%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $99.38 -0.26%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $34.75 -0.14%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Staples Inc. (SPLS) $11.38 +2.94%
Whole Foods Market Inc. (WFM) $39.41 +2.37%
Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $22.69 +2.07%
Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $108.28 +1.89%
Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $75.41 +1.43%
Nxp Semiconductors Nv (NXPI) $65.55 +1.25%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $61.38 +1.19%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $102.06 +1.16%
Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $43.71 +1.16%
Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $157.01 +1.12%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Garmin Ltd. (GRMN) $55.54 -3.34%
Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) $50.60 -3.08%
TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP) $101.88 -2.52%
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $169.68 -1.50%
Facebook Inc. (FB) $74.94 -1.34%
Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $472.41 -1.31%
Keurig Green Mountain Inc (GMCR) $134.80 -1.28%
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $196.86 -1.21%
Fastenal Co. (FAST) $45.25 -1.05%
Linear Technology Corp. (LLTC) $44.60 -0.99%
AB