By Caroline Valetkevitch
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The Nasdaq rose on Wednesday as strong online holiday sales boosted shares of retailers, including Amazon.com (AMZN.O), and relieved some concerns about the consumer.
The Dow edged lower as falling oil prices prompted investors to sell energy shares, while the Standard & Poor’s index finished flat.
Worries that bank profits could be hurt by derivatives legislation under consideration also curbed enthusiasm about the broader market.
Amid continued questions about retailers’ strength in the holiday shopping season, online vendors turned out to be strong performers after analytics firm comScore said that Cyber Monday sales rose 5 percent from the previous year.
Shares of Amazon jumped 2.7 percent to $142.25 on Nasdaq, and during the session, the stock hit a split-adjusted all-time high of $142.67.
“It’s not a surprise e-commerce retail is expected to be much stronger than bricks-and-mortar retail this season. More people are content to do more convenient shopping online (and) get just as good, if not better, discounts,” said Michael James, senior trader at regional investment bank Wedbush Morgan in Los Angeles.
The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI declined 18.90 points, or 0.18 percent, to end at 10,452.68. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index .SPX inched up just 0.38 of a point, or 0.03 percent, to finish at 1,109.24. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC gained 9.22 points, or 0.42 percent, to close at 2,185.03.
BANK OF AMERICA JUMPS LATE
Shares of Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) rose 3.2 percent to $16.15 after the closing bell as it said it has worked out a deal with the government to repay $45 billion in taxpayer bailout funds, known as Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds, by raising new capital. During the regular session, the banking company’s stock closed at $15.65, down 1.5 percent, on the NYSE.
An ADP National Employment private-sector survey showed U.S. private employers shed 169,000 jobs in November. That data got Wall Street’s attention because weakness in the labor market is one of the biggest headwinds facing a recovery.
While the number was fewer than the 195,000 jobs cut in October, the ADP report was worse than expected. The U.S. government’s key monthly employment report is due Friday morning.
In other economic data, the Federal Reserve said in a report the weak U.S. economy is improving modestly with little upward pressure on wages and finished goods.
Meanwhile, an unexpected increase in energy supply gave investors a reason to unload some energy companies’ shares, pushing the S&P Energy index .GSPE down 0.8 percent and making it the worst performer among S&P sectors. Occidental Petroleum (OXY.N) shed 1.2 percent to $81.21. Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N) dropped 0.3 percent to $75.79.
January crude oil futures fell $1.77 to settle at $76.60 per barrel after U.S. government inventory data showed a surprising build in crude and gasoline stockpiles.
JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) said it could see its revenue fall by as much as $3 billion in a “worst case” scenario under the legislation, according to a note from Sanford C. Bernstein to investors. Shares of JPMorgan, a Dow component, fell 0.7 percent to $41.93. Continued…
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