Energy stocks slump on oil-price slide

Stocks are edging lower as energy companies slide along with the price of crude oil. Social networking companies LinkedIn (-3.0 percent) and Twitter (-5.6 percent) fell, adding to their declines following disappointing earnings last week. The S&P 500 lost 0.69 percent to 2,089.29 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.64 percent to 5,095.24.

At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 17,598.26, down 91.60 points (0.52 percent).

Sydney eased 0.35 per cent, or 19.9 points, to 5,679.3 ahead of the central bank’s monthly monetary policy meeting on Tuesday. Oil has fallen sharply since the end of June on evidence that a global supply glut is building at the same time demand appears to be slowing. The steep decline in oil prices over the last year should act as a driver for spending, many investors say, as consumers direct the money they have saved on gas elsewhere.

BEIJING – Weak Chinese manufacturing weighed on Asian stocks Monday but European markets mostly rose, shrugging off a 22 percent plunge in the Athens benchmark which reopened after a five-week shutdown.

Two surveys revealed Monday confirmed the injury triggered to the Greek financial system in July by the financial institution closures, cash controls and uncertainty over the nation’s future. A separate survey confirmed that enterprise and shopper confidence fell for a fifth consecutive month in July to its worst degree since October 2012.

The company, which owns the Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage brand, blamed conditions in the beef market for its woes, citing high cattle costs and “export issues” as factors that were hurting its profits. “We saw a surprise downward adjustment to China’s gauge for smaller manufacturers’ activity, signaling further weakness in the Chinese economy”, said Bernard Aw, market strategist for IG in Singapore.

Benchmark U.S. crude fell $1.95, or 4.1 percent, to close at $45.17 a barrel in New York.

The S&P 500 index is up 39.14 points, or 1.9 percent.

U.S. factories have been rather less busy final month. Economists had anticipated the index to stay unchanged.

Investors are following this month’s economic reports closely to see if the economy is strengthening sufficiently for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates later this year.

CURRENCIES: The dollar rose to 124.10 yen from 123.97 yen in the previous trading session. On Monday, keystone OPEC member Saudi Arabia said it would soon increase its price for oil by about $1 a barrel, according to Reuters.

Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.16 percent.