Stocks mixed in thin trading; oil creeps over $96
Source: AP-Excite
By MATTHEW CRAFT
NEW YORK (AP) - Mixed economic data kept the stock market hovering near break-even Tuesday. One report on home prices looked encouraging, and another on consumer confidence was worrisome.
House prices increased in all major U.S. cities in June, according to the closely watched Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home-price index. The report was the latest sign that the housing market has been gaining strength.
"I thought it was terrific," said Phil Orlando, chief equity strategist at Federated Investors. "If you look at all of the key housing metrics over the past year - affordability, building permits, starts - all those numbers are pointing in the right direction."
The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 21.68 points to close at 13,102.99. Hewlett-Packard led the Dow down. HP's stock lost 31 cents to $16.90 and hit a new one-year low.
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In an Aug. 3, 2012 file photo trader Dan Tandy, right, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. U.S. stocks closed mixed Monday Aug. 27, 2012, on one of the quietest trading days of the year. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)