At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 47 points, or 0.3 per cent, at 17,132. The Standard & Poor’s 500 was off 0.2% and the Nasdaq composite was down 0.1%. Nike Inc. shares rose 1.2% at $126.43.
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US crude-oil futures were down 4.5% at $47.39 a barrel.
In company news, Eli Lilly’s (LLY.N) shares fell 7.8%, its biggest single-day percentage decline in seven years, after the drugmaker said it was scrapping an experimental heart drug. Exxon Mobil added 4 cents to 79.30.
A few stocks that benefit from less expensive oil rallied, however. France’s CAC-40 and Germany’s DAX shed 1.3% and 1.1%, respectively.
Shares of EMC Corp. were up 1.8% at $28.35 after news that Dell Inc. and private-equity firm Silver Lake will buy the data storage company for $67 billion in cash and stock. Volumes for the session are expected to be thin, with most banks, federal institutions and USA bond markets closed for the Columbus Day holiday.
US stocks Tuesday followed global stocks lower.
Investors are now focussed on corporate earnings, according to Gordon Charlop, managing director at Rosenblatt Securities.
The Stoxx Europe fell 0.3%.
Chinese shares saw strong gains earlier Monday amid signs of reform in the telecommunications sector and stimulus measures from Beijing. The Shanghai Composite gained 3.3% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 1.2%.
Japanese markets were closed for a public holiday.
At a meeting of the global Monetary Fund over the weekend, central bank officials urged the Federal Reserve to proceed with its rate increase in order to reduce uncertainty. As many might suggest I think the Fed will hold on raising rates at least for this year it won’t take a risk to put the American economy back into recession especially with European Central Bank (ECB) and the Bank of Japan (BOJ) lowering their rates and continuing with quantitative easing programs.
There is no major economic data due out Monday.
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The USA dollar traded mildly lower against major world currencies, with the euro above $1.13 and the yen at 120.05 yen against the greenback.
