U.S. stocks are mostly higher Tuesday as gains for banks and energy companies mostly cancel out losses for industrial companies and retailers. Automakers are climbing after China said it will reduce auto import duties, another sign the two powers are resolving some of their differences on trade. Chipmaker Micron Technology is surging after it said it will buy back $10 billion in stock.
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KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 index gained 4 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,737 at noon Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 22 points, or 0.1 percent, to 24,990 as Boeing, Home Depot and UnitedHealth all fell about 1 percent. The Nasdaq composite picked up 9 points, or 0.1 percent, to 7,403. The Russell 2000 index of smaller company stocks rose 1 point, or 0.1 percent, to 1,639 after closing at record highs the last four days.
DRIVE ON: China said it will reduce auto import duties effective July 1 following pledges to buy more U.S. goods and end restrictions on foreign ownership in the industry. China is the world’s biggest auto market by number of vehicles sold. Purchases of SUVs, sedans and minivans totaled 24.7 million units in 2017, compared with 17.2 million for the United States, the No. 2 market.
General Motors climbed 1 percent to $38.47 and Tata Motors of India advanced 2.8 percent to $22.64. Fiat Chrysler gained 1.9 percent to $22.77.
TRADE HOPES: This week investors have grown more hopeful that the trade dispute between the U.S. and China will be resolved without major effects on the global economy. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said this week that the two sides agreed not to place tariffs on imported goods for now and that China agreed to buy more goods made in the U.S. The U.S. had proposed raising tariffs on Chinese goods worth up to $150 billion, while China targeted $50 billion in U.S. products.
JALOPIES: Auto parts retailers Advance Auto Parts and AutoZone reported weaker sales than analysts expected, and both stocks tumbled. AutoZone dropped 7.8 percent to $613.11 and Advance fell 4.2 percent to $114.16.
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PENNEY DROPPED: J.C. Penney fell 6 percent to $2.35 as CEO Marvin Ellison leaves the department store to become the top executive at Lowe’s. Ellison worked at Lowe’s rival Home Depot for 12 years before he was hired by J.C. Penney, and he will replace Robert Niblock on July 2. Lowe’s fell 0.8 percent to $86.73.
Rival Kohl’s fell after releasing its quarterly results. While Kohl’s posted a larger profit and better revenue than analysts had forecast, the company said much of the gain came because a Mother’s Day-related sale came earlier in the year, and while that helped the company in the fiscal second quarter, it will hurt its sales in the third and fourth quarters. Kohl’s sank 7.2 percent to $60.74.
TECHNOLOGY: Micron jumped 7.1 percent to $59.41 after it announced the stock buyback. The chipmaker’s shares rallied Monday after it raised its forecasts for the third quarter. Software maker Adobe Systems climbed 0.9 percent to $240.25 after it agreed to buy Magento Commerce for $1.68 billion and said it will buy back another $8 billion in stock.
STOPPING SHORT: Tesla lost 3 percent to $275.92 after Consumer Reports said the company’s Model 3 sedan has longer emergency stopping distances than any other modern car it has tested. The magazine said the car has a substantially longer stopping distance from 60 miles an hour than the average for luxury compact sedans.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on Twitter that the company will make a software update to address the braking distance, and added that Consumer Reports tested an early production car.
ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude gained 0.6 percent to $72.65 per barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, rose 1.2 percent to $80.21 per barrel in London.
BONDS: Bond prices dipped. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.08 percent from 3.06 percent.
CURRENCY: The dollar declined to 111.03 yen from 111.11 yen. The euro rose to $1.1784 from $1.1772.
OVERSEAS: The German DAX, which was closed for a holiday Monday, jumped 0.9 percent and London’s FTSE 100 added 0.5 percent. France’s CAC 40 rose 0.2 percent. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 lost 0.2 percent. Markets in Hong Kong and South Korea were closed for holidays.
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AP Markets Writer Marley Jay can be reached at http://twitter.com/MarleyJayAP . His work can be found at https://apnews.com/search/marley%20jay
