Stocks barely move as oil surges

Surging oil prices left stocks little changed Monday as interest rate worries also diluted Wall Street’s enthusiasm over multibillion-dollar acquisitions in the banking and newspaper sectors.

With no new economic reports from the government, investors turned their focus to the day’s two major deals: Capital One Financial Corp.’s $14.6 billion offer for North Fork Bancorp Inc. and McClatchy Co.’s $4.5 billion bid for newspaper publisher Knight Ridder Inc.

But continued nervousness about higher interest rates, oil and inflation limited Wall Street’s momentum, said Jeff Kleintop, chief investment strategist for PNC Financial Services Group. This week’s reports on consumer price increases and retail sales will feed speculation over whether the Federal Reserve might lift rates as many as three more times, he said.

“We’re certainly looking to see how core (consumer) prices come in,” Kleintop said. “If they continue to show a bit of upward pressure, that could push up rates and affect the market.”

At the close of trading, the Dow slipped 0.32 to 11,076.02. The Dow advanced as much as 40 points early in the session.

The broader stock indicators tapered earlier gains. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index added 2.55, or 0.2 percent, to 1,284.13, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 4.99, or 0.22 percent, to 2,267.03, after losing 1.76 percent last week.

Bond prices extended last week’s decline, with the yield on the 10-year Treasury note edging up to 4.77 percent from 4.76 percent late Friday. The dollar lost ground against other major currencies, and gold prices also slipped.

Crude futures jumped as anxiety about political tension in major oil-producing nations countered reports of growing U.S. reserves.

Kleintop said the market appeared to have some momentum from last week’s jobs data and should react to a number of key reports scheduled for this week, including import and export prices, housing starts and consumer confidence. However, many traders are already looking ahead to the Fed’s March 28 meeting, when the central bank is expected to boost the federal funds rate a 16th consecutive time.

Advancing issues led decliners by 6 to 5 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume of 1.51 billion shares lagged the 1.6 billion shares that changed hands Friday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 1.70, or 0.23 percent, to 728.04.

Overseas, Japan’s Nikkei stock average gained 1.55 percent. Britain’s FTSE 100 jumped 0.76 percent, Germany’s DAX index added 0.87 percent and France’s CAC-40 was higher by 0.75 percent.