US Stocks Higher, But Constrained by Energy Sector

Shortly before 1500 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 71 points to 17,060.71, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were seven and 12 points lower respectively. The S&P 500, which was on track to end four straight days of gains, fell about 11 points, or 0.6%, to 2,006.

A few stocks that benefit from less expensive oil rallied, however. The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 3.7 percent for the week, its second-best week of the year so far.

EMC’s (EMC.N) shares were up 1.8% after Dell said it would buy the data storage company in a $67 billion deal.

There were no major economic data due out Monday, as most banks, federal institutions and US bond markets were closed for the Columbus Day holiday.

Investors are now focused on corporate earnings, analysts said.

Earnings season is “where the rubber meets the road for these companies”, he said, adding that investors will be zeroing in on how companies have been affected by a strong USA dollar and low oil prices.

Post-tax profit came in at US$3.36bn, down from US$4.75bn the year before, on sales of US$17.1bn, down 7.4% year-on-year and below the market consensus forecast of US$17.5bn.

Chinese shares logged strong gains amid stimulus measures from Beijing. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 30 points, or 0.6%, to 4,808. Elsewhere, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard earlier called for “gradually edging” interest rates higher “since the [economic] goals have been met and policy would still remain very accommodative”.

At a meeting of the worldwide Monetary Fund over the weekend, central bank officials urged the Federal Reserve to proceed with its rate increase to reduce uncertainty.

JPMorgan Chase is scheduled to report after the close Tuesday, beginning a heavy week of earnings reports from financials, which includes Bank of America and Wells Fargo on Wednesday, and Citigroup and Goldman Sachs on Thursday.

Adjusted earnings per share of US$1.49 topped market expectations of US$1.43, but the shares were down 13 cents at US$95.86, despite the company unveiling a monster US$10bn share repurchase program.

Gold rose 0.9 per cent to $US1,166.70 a troy ounce.