Stocks end day mostly lower

Weak U.S. retail sales data helped set the stage Wednesday for a listless day of trading on Wall Street.

Coming off a two-day losing streak, the major stock indexes spent much of the day drifting between small gains and losses before ending mostly lower.

Technology stocks were among the biggest gainers, sending the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite slightly higher. The Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor’s 500 index notched their third straight loss. The price of U.S. oil fell.

In addition to corporate deals and earnings news, traders had their eyes on the Commerce Department’s latest monthly snapshot of retail sales. The report, a bellwether for consumer spending, showed that retail sales were essentially flat in April, falling short of Wall Street’s forecasts. All told, retail sales have risen just 0.9% over the last 12 months.

“The retail sales numbers were really crucial in terms of assessing whether or not the rebound from the first quarter was gaining momentum,” said Quincy Krosby, market strategist for Prudential Financial. “It leaves a lingering concern as to whether or not there’s something more at work keeping the economy from rebounding.”

The Dow fell 7.74 points, or 0.04%, to 18,060.49. The S&P 500 shed 0.64 points, or 0.03%, to 2,098.48. The Nasdaq added 5.50 points, or 0.1%, to 4,981.69.

The indexes are up for the month and year.

After a brief dip, bond prices rose, sending the yield on the 10-year Treasury note up to 2.28% from 2.25% late Tuesday.

Six of the 10 sectors in the S&P 500 moved lower. Utilities stocks declined the most. The sector is down 8.8% this year. Technology stocks notched the biggest gain. That sector is now up 3.1% this year.

The price of U.S. oil fell 25 cents to $60.50 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils used by many U.S. refineries, fell 5 cents to $66.81 a barrel in London.

In metals trading, gold jumped $25.80 to $1,218.20 an ounce, silver rose 70 cents to $17.22 an ounce and copper edged down less than a penny to $2.93 a pound.