The Nasdaq 100 index slipped in midday trading Wednesday as Wall Street faced a mixed bag of economic indicators, including a jump in crude oil prices and a report on factory orders showing weakening demand for certain items.
The index, which includes 100 of the largest nonfinancial securities listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market, fell 19.83 points to 1,842.88 in midday trading. The broader Nasdaq composite fell 27.63 points to 2,277.34.
Light, sweet crude for August delivery rose $1.41 to $142.28 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The Energy Department's Energy Information Administration reported crude oil supplies fell by 2 million barrels last week, but that gasoline stockpiles rose by 2.1 million barrels.
Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said factory orders jumped 0.6 percent in May, a level that Wall Street had expected. Yet the results revealed slumping demand for autos, heavy machinery and steel.
Shares of airlines Ryanair Holdings PLC and United Airlines parent UAL Corp. helped pull down the index. The profitability of airline operators is closely linked to jet-fuel costs.
Ryanair shares lost $2.09, or 7.2 percent, to $27.01, and shares of UAL shares shed 34 cents, or 7.4 percent, to $4.26 after hitting a 52-week low of $4.22 earlier in the session.
Shares of Dish Network Corp. fell $1.83, or 6.3 percent, to $27.28. The satellite television company said AT&T Inc. is ending an agreement to market its programming services.
On the gaining side, shares of Apollo Group Inc. gained $11.07, or 23.9 percent, to $57.33. The University of Phoenix operator said student enrollment and revenue rose in the third quarter.
Shares of SanDisk Corp. added $1.10, or 6.2 percent, to $18.72.
Shares of Yahoo Inc. jumped $1.35, or 6.7 percent, to $21.55. The Wall Street Journal reported that Microsoft Corp. has been in talks with several media companies about a deal that would, in effect, break up Yahoo by separating its search engine from the rest of the business.
Terms & Conditions
RSS Headlines
Fool UK