Updated from 8:08 a.m. EDTStocks in New York were buoyant at the open Wednesday as oil pulled back for a second day and durable-goods orders showed a decline that was far less severe than expected.
The
Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 32 points to 12,581, and the
S&P 500 rose 4 points to 1389. The
Nasdaq Composite was better by 8 points at 2489. All were higher by around 0.3%.
Content Continues Below
As the new day began, oil stayed on a downward track following Tuesday's declines and, at one point, reached a one-week low of $126.37 a barrel. Recently, futures were losing $1.73 to $127.12. The
United States Oil (USO) exchange-traded fund was down 2%.
Traders were also getting help from a Commerce Department report that total orders of durable goods -- those whose designed to last three years or more -- fell just 0.5% sequentially last month. That's a bit worse than the prior month's 0.3% slip, but economists were expecting a 1.5% drop.
Gold futures, meanwhile, were down $16.50 to $891.40. The U.S. dollar firmed by 0.2% against the euro to $1.5669 and added 0.4% against the yen to fetch 104.71.
On the corporate front, after the prior market close
Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) said it was offering up to 35 million equity units for $50 apiece in an effort to raise $2 billion.
Elsewhere, a German business paper reported that Sweden's SEB and France-based BNP Paribas and Societe Generale might be interested in trying to acquire
Citigroup's (C) Citibank unit. The banks are also reportedly Deutsche Postbank and
Allianz's (AZ) Dresdner Bank.
Meanwhile, merger discussions between United Airlines operator
UAL (UAUA) and
US Airways (LCC) evidently have fallen apart,
CNBC reported, citing people with direct knowledge of the talks.
UPS (UPS) was one of the early winners, gaining 3.3% after saying it's pursuing an agreement to provide transportation in its air network for all of DHL's express, deferred and international package volume within the U.S. UPS also would provide airlift for DHL packages between the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
Also, a Detroit paper reported that carmaker
Ford (F) plans to slash its salaried work force by up to 12% as the company suffers from harsh economic conditions. Shares of Ford were up almost 3%.
Treasury prices were little changed. The 10-year note was flat in price to yield 3.92%, and the 30-year bond dipped 1/32 in price, yielding 4.64%.
Markets abroad were mixed. In Asia, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 sank 1.3% overnight, and the Nikkei 225 slipped 0.1%. Europe fared better however, as London's FTSE 100 rose 0.2% and Germany's Xetra Dax jumped 1.1%. The Paris Cac was up 1.4%.
© 1996 -
2008 TheStreet.com, Inc. All rights reserved.
Most Read Articles from TheStreet.com
Stocks With Insider Buying, Buybacks: CVS
Large repurchases make CVS and Lexmark stocks to watch.
Kodiak Joins 'Stocks Under $10' Watch List
The main catalyst for the oil and gas company lies in the Bakken Shale play, located in the Williston Basin of North Dakota and Montana.
Cramer on Top-Searched Stocks: Joy Global
Joy Global is among the most-searched stocks on <I>TheStreet.com</I>. Here's what Cramer had to say about it recently.