Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Wall Street retreats, as European stocks end high

The S&P 500 broke a five-day streak of gains on Wednesday as investors found little reason to extend a rally that took the benchmark index to four-year highs.

While the major averages ended essentially flat, three stocks fell for every gainer on the New York Stock Exchange, a sign of investors pulling back from gains that have lifted numerous blue-chips to 52-week highs.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 16.42 points, or 0.12 percent, to 13,194.10 at the close. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index slipped 1.67 points, or 0.12 percent, to 1,394.28. The Nasdaq Composite Index inched up just 0.85 of a point, or 0.03 percent, to 3,040.73.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 11.69 points, or 0.09 percent, to 13,189.37. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index shed 0.30 points, or 0.02 percent, to 1,395.65. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 2.32 points, or 0.08 percent, to 3,042.20.

European stocks ended higher, with benchmarks closing at levels not seen since August, after a drop in Italy's borrowing costs at an auction and a brighter forecast from the US Federal Reserve fuelled the market's brisk week-long rally.

The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares ended 0.3 percent higher at 1,098.37 points, while the euro zone's blue chip Euro STOXX 50 index added 0.7 percent, to close at 2,574.79 points.

Japan's Nikkei average climbed 1.5 percent to close above 10,000 for the first time in seven months on Wednesday, boosted by Wall Street gains after the Fed upgraded its US economic outlook, while Tokyo shares received a further lift from a weaker yen.

The benchmark Nikkei was up 151.44 points at 10,050.52, its highest closing level since July 26, after intraday forays above the 10,000-mark in the previous three sessions failed to hold until the close.