Stocks slip as energy shares drag
3:38 p.m. 06/07/2006 Provided by
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks mostly dipped in late trading on Wednesday as a drop of more than 2 percent in crude oil prices dragged down shares of major energy companies.
But the decline was capped by some buying by bargain hunters.
U.S. crude oil for July delivery dropped $1.68, or 2.3 percent, to settle at $70.82 a barrel after a government report showed U.S. crude oil and gasoline stockpiles rose last week.
Shares of Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) fell 2 percent to $59.22, weighing on the S&P 500 and the Dow. The stock of oil field service provider Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB) dropped 4.7 percent to $60.95 on the New York Stock Exchange and also dragged on the S&P 500.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 13.37 points, or 0.12 percent, at 10,988.77, slipping back below the key 11,000 level for the second time this week. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (SPX) was down just 0.52 of a point, or 0.04 percent, at 1,263.33. The Nasdaq Composite Index (COMP) was up just 0.20 of a point, or 0.01 percent, at 2,162.98.
