Stocks Fall, Jobs and Oil Hover
By Bill Rigby
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks drifted lower on Wednesday, after two sessions of gains, as investors kept a wary eye on high oil prices and waited for Friday's jobs creation data.The rising price of oil and other commodities may boost energy and raw materials company stocks but could act as a drag on most others with the prospect of higher energy costs.
"There are some that fear that very high oil prices will be a drag on growth," said Ozan Akcin, chief market strategist at Puglisi and Co. "But a lot of investors see oil as a big play."
Oil futures are trading near 13-year highs as OPEC forges ahead with tighter oil supply curbs beginning in April. A fire at a large BP oil refinery in Texas threatened to push gasoline prices higher.
Investors are also eyeing Friday's monthly employment report, waiting for an upturn in hiring which would sustain the economy's recovery. Economists expect to show 103,000 new jobs created in March, up from 21,000 in February.
Indexes slipped lower after two disappointing economic reports.
The Chicago Purchasing Management index, which measures business conditions in the area, dipped to 57.6 for March, against 63.6 in February.
Meanwhile, new orders at U.S. factories rose slightly in February, the government said, but demand rebounded by less than expected. The Commerce Department said factory orders advanced 0.3 percent last month after falling a revised 0.9 percent in January. Wall Street had expected a 1.5 percent gain.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 60.73 points, or 0.58 percent, at 10,320.97. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 5.41 points, or 0.48 percent, at 1,121.59. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index was down 14.30 points, or 0.71 percent, at 1,986.33.
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