NEW YORK (AP) – U.S. stock indexes ticked higher on Thursday, part of a mixed day for markets around the world.
Under Armour, PayPal and others joined the lengthening parade of big U.S. companies reporting bigger-than-expected profits for the first three months of the year. A drop in oil prices helped pull energy stocks lower.
KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 2 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,390, as of 10:15 a.m. Eastern time. It had climbed to within a whisper of its record closing level of 2,395.96 in recent days, but momentum faded late Wednesday after the White House’s highly anticipated unveiling of its tax plan proved to be light on details.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 13 points, or 0.1 percent, to 20,989. The Nasdaq composite rose 20, or 0.3 percent, to 6,045.
ENERGY SLUMP: Benchmark U.S. crude dropped $1.05, or 2.1 percent, to $48.57 per barrel, while Brent crude, which is used to price international oils, dropped $1.03 to $51.38 per barrel.