Retail gains, bank losses leave markets stagnant

Major U.S. indexes stood stock-still for the third consecutive day Thursday as gains for retailers were canceled out by losses for banks and other companies.

Energy companies again headed lower after a sharp drop in oil prices the day before. Amazon and media company Viacom led consumerfocused companies higher. The Nasdaq composite inched higher and notched its eighth gain in a row.

Trading this week has been light and investors seem to have set aside their worries about trade tensions. The S&P 500 made a solid gain on Monday but has hardly budged since then. The VIX, a measure of how much volatility investors expect, has fallen to its lowest level since early January.

The S&P 500 index fell in the final minutes of trading, closing down 4.12 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,853.58.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 74.52 points, or 0.3 percent, to 25,509.23. The Nasdaq composite added 3.46 points to 7,891.78.