A surge in commodity prices derailed the market's advance Tuesday and raised fresh questions about the economy's healthEquity investors may have been able to shrug off more problems in the banking sector Tuesday, but a spike in oil prices to $100 per barrel knocked the wind out of the stock market. The fresh rise in crude was a sobering reminder that the credit crunch and housing slump aren’t the only factors threatening to hinder U.S. economic growth.
Major U.S. stock indexes closed lower on Tuesday, as a broad-based rally in commodities such as oil, metals and agricultural products siphoned off interest from equities. Earlier in the day, stocks had benefited from a strong earnings report by leading retailer Wal-Mart Stores (WMT) and progress made by the largest bond insurers toward restructuring their operations, which overshadowed an admission by Credit Suisse Group (CS) that it overvalued its mortgage-backed securities by $2.85 billion.
On Tuesday, the Dow Jones industrial average finished 10.99 points, or 0.09%, lower at 12,337.22. The broader S&P 500 index edged down 1.21 points, or 0.09%, to 1,348.78. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index shed 15.60 points, or 0.67%, to trade at 2,306.20.
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