Stocks down after a seesaw trading day
NEW YORK - Stocks swung from gains to losses and almost back again Tuesday. The U.S. market opened the day higher, getting a boost from encouraging news on hiring and small-business confidence. Then in the afternoon, the market swooned as oil closed lower. Late in the day, the pendulum swung back as oil gained in after-hours trading and stocks ended with small losses.
NEW YORK - Stocks swung from gains to losses and almost back again Tuesday.
The U.S. market opened the day higher, getting a boost from encouraging news on hiring and small-business confidence. Then in the afternoon, the market swooned as oil closed lower. Late in the day, the pendulum swung back as oil gained in after-hours trading and stocks ended with small losses.
From peak to trough, the Dow Jones industrial average swung 425 points.
On the day, the Dow fell 27.16 points, or 0.15 percent, to 17,613.68. The Nasdaq composite slipped 3.21 points, or less than 0.07 percent, to 4,661.50. The Standard & Poor's 500 index eased 5.23 points, or 0.26 percent, to 2,023.03.
Stocks have had a jumpy start in 2015 as investors mull the impact of oil's plunge. The outlook for global growth remains fuzzy as economies in Europe and Asia struggle.
Even though stock market volatility has picked up, investors should remain calm, said Janet Dougherty, a global-investment specialist at J.P. Morgan Private Bank.
"You have to remember that we've been through an extended period where there wasn't a lot of volatility in the equity markets, and now we're just getting back to normalized levels," Dougherty said.
Oil fell Tuesday after the energy minister of the United Arab Emirates said there were no plans for OPEC to curb production to shore up falling prices.
Benchmark U.S. crude fell 18 cents, to $45.89 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the international standard, fell 88 cents, to $47.82 a barrel in London. Oil's price has slumped almost 60 percent since June.
"At a certain point, oil has got to find a bottom," said Jeffrey Carbone of wealth manager Cornerstone. "But for that to happen, somebody is going to have to flinch and cut production."
The market also took a knock after KB Home's CEO said his company was seeing soft demand in some markets. The comments caused the stock to plunge, dragging other home builders lower.
KB Home ended the day down $2.70, or 16.3 percent, at $13.87. The Standard & Poor's home building index fell 3 percent.
The market's initial rise came after a survey suggested that the rapid pace of hiring in 2014 would continue this year. A separate survey showed that small businesses remain confident about growth.
U.S. employers advertised the most job openings in nearly 14 years in November, the Labor Department said. That suggests businesses are determined to add staff because they are confident strong economic growth will create more demand for goods and services.
Job openings rose 2.9 percent to 4.97 million in November, the most since January 2001. More job vacancies generally lead to more hiring.
A survey on small business showed confidence rising to an eight-year high in December. The survey also showed that more small-business owners plan to raise wages.
