Stock market today: Wall Street drifts as oil rises and US economy shows more signs of strength
U.S. stocks are drifting, as crude oil prices continue to climb and more signals arrive showing the economy remains solid
NEW YORK — U.S. stocks are drifting Thursday, as crude oil prices continue to climb and more signals arrive suggesting the economy remains solid.
The S&P 500 was mostly unchanged in afternoon trading after flipping between modest gains and losses earlier in the day. It's been shaky this week after worries about worsening tensions in the Middle East knocked the index off its record.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 120 points, or 0.3%, as of 12:30 p.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.1% higher.
Oil prices rose again as the world continues the wait to see how Israel will respond to Iran’s missile attack from Tuesday. A barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, climbed 4.4% to $77.15 after starting the week below $72.
Iran is a major producer of oil, and a worry is that a broadening war could affect neighboring countries that are also integral to the flow of crude. Helping to keep prices in check, though, are signals that supplies of oil remain ample at the moment.
In the bond market, Treasury yields rose following a pair of reports on the U.S. economy. One showed growth for real estate, health care and other U.S. services businesses accelerated to its strongest pace since February 2023 and topped economists' expectations, though employment trends may be slowing.
A separate report, meanwhile, suggested the number of layoffs across the United States remains relatively low. Slightly more workers filed for unemployment benefits last week, but the number remains low compared with history.
Outside of this week’s worries about the Middle East, the dominant question hanging
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