U.S. stocks veered higher in late-afternoon trading Monday, on track for a higher close. Energy stocks led the broad rally, rebounding from an early slump in oil prices. Investors ultimately shrugged off news that major oil-producing nations failed to hammer out a deal over the weekend to cut output.
KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average rose 90 points, or 0.5 percent, to 17,987 as of 3:27 p.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index added 11 points, or 0.6 percent, to 2,092. The Nasdaq composite index gained 15 points, or 0.3 percent, to 4,953.
NO DEAL: Talks in Doha, Qatar, failed to reach a consensus on freezing production to support oil prices. Saudi Arabia said it wouldn’t back a deal if Iran, which is trying to ramp up output as international sanctions are lifted, wasn’t involved. Already tense relations between the two countries deteriorated in recent months over issues including the wars in Syria and Yemen, in which they are backing opposing sides.
THE QUOTE: Word of the failed talks initially pulled oil prices lower, weighing on stocks. But investors decided that expectations for a deal on oil production had been very modest to begin with, said Eric Wiegand, senior portfolio manager at U.S. Bank Wealth Management.
“The Saudis, back in January, had continued to point to June as being the OPEC meeting that they were really focused on,” Wiegand said. “Perhaps the expectations for something before June were misplaced.”
ENERGY: U.S. crude fell 58 cents, or 1.4 percent, to close at $39.78 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the international benchmark, lost 19 cents, or 0.4 percent, to close at $42.91 a barrel in London. Earlier, both prices had been even lower, with New York crude down 7 percent at one point.
In other energy trading, wholesale gasoline fell about 2 cents to $1.44 a gallon. Heating oil was little changed at $1.24 a gallon. Natural gas rose 38 cents, or 2 percent, to $1.94 per 1,000 cubic feet.
PUMPED UP: Energy and drilling services companies were rising again after a sell-off earlier in the day. Hess rose $2.50, or 4.4 percent, to $59.67, while Marathon Oil climbed 38 cents, or 2.9 percent, to $13.39. Baker Hughes gained $1.76, or 4 percent, to $45.56.
TIME TO PLAY: Hasbro jumped 5.7 percent after reporting better results than analysts were expecting. The toy company benefited from strong sales of “Star Wars,” ‘‘Frozen” and Disney princess products. The stock added $4.73 to $87.14.
BIG PHARMA: Endo International led a surge among several pharmaceutical companies. Endo vaulted $1.97, or 7.5 percent, to $28.30, while Regeneron Pharmaceuticals climbed $15.87, or 3.9 percent, to $422.60.
STREAM THIS: Amazon rose 1 percent after the e-commerce giant introduced a stand-alone video streaming service available to users who aren’t already subscribers to its Amazon Prime service. Amazon added $6.07 to $631.96. Investors appeared to take Amazon’s news as a negative on rival Netflix. The stock slumped $3.73, to 3.3 percent, to $107.78.
RATTLED: Taser, which makes electrical weapons and body cameras, was down 3.4 percent following news that Los Angeles is delaying a plan to put body cameras on almost all of its police officers. Taser shed 65 cents to $18.49.
BIG SLIDE: Calumet Specialty Products Partners tumbled 46.8 percent after the fuel and specialty chemicals company issued a discouraging first-quarter forecast and suspended its cash distribution. The company lost $4.80 to $5.47.
OVERSEAS: Germany’s DAX rose 0.7 percent, while the CAC-40 in France edged up 0.3 percent. Britain’s FTSE 100 index was up 0.2 percent. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index dropped 3.4 percent as a rising yen and quake-related production halts added to investor worries. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index lost 0.7 percent. South Korea’s Kospi slid 0.3 percent, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.4 percent.
BONDS AND CURRENCIES: Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 1.77 percent from 1.75 late Friday. In currency markets, the dollar slipped to 108.77 yen from 108.70 yen. The euro rose to $1.1315 from $1.1288.
METALS: Precious and industrial metals futures ended narrowly mixed. Gold edged up 40 cents to $1,235 an ounce, silver slipped six cents to $16.25 an ounce and copper edged up a penny to $2.16 a pound.
First Published: April 18, 2016, 7:36 p.m.
