United States stock indexes edged toward record territory in morning trading, with the market drawing support from falling oil prices. The S&P 500 rose about 0.2 percent to sit within a fraction of the all time high it set the previous month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 124 points, also 0.2 percent, while the technology heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 0.4 percent to reach its own record level early in the session.
Energy markets set much of the tone. Brent crude, the international benchmark, fell 1.9 percent to 98.46 dollars a barrel, retreating from close to 110 dollars a week earlier. Lower fuel costs tend to ease pressure on companies and households alike. In the bond market, the yield on the 10 year Treasury note slipped to 4.95 percent from 4.96 percent, a small move that reflected steady expectations for the path of interest rates.
Individual companies drove some of the sharper moves. Shares of On Holding, the Swiss maker of running shoes and sportswear, jumped 10.3 percent after the company laid out multi year financial targets and approved a stock buyback of up to 1 billion dollars running through 2029. Carnival climbed 4 percent as the cruise operator pointed to lower expected fuel expenses, a direct benefit of the drop in the price of oil.
Travel and retail names also gained. American Airlines added 2.2 percent and the car parts chain AutoZone rose 2.7 percent. “We feel we are well positioned for sales growth” in the coming fiscal year, AutoZone chief executive Phil Daniele said. Not every large stock followed the market higher, with the chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices slipping 0.4 percent even as the broader indexes advanced during the morning.
The session extended a run of gains built on cooling energy prices and hopes that inflation will keep easing. Investors have watched oil closely through the autumn, after prices spiked earlier in the month before pulling back. With several indexes near record highs, attention now turns to corporate earnings and economic data due in the weeks ahead for signs of whether the advance can hold or has run ahead of itself.
