FINANCIAL MARKETS

NEW YORK—U.S. stocks hardly moved Tuesday as investors were slow to dip a toe back into the market, although energy companies did climb with the price of oil and natural gas. Banks and retailers took losses. Stock indexes flickered between tiny gains and losses throughout the day before they mounted a small rally over the last half hour of trading. Energy companies rose the most, and companies that make drinks, packaged foods, and other household items also rose.

That came a day after car makers reported weak sales for March, which raised concerns about sales of other goods.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index picked up 1.32 points, or almost 0.1 percent, to 2,360.16. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 39.03 points, or 0.2 percent, to 20,689.24. The Nasdaq composite added 3.93 points, or 0.1 percent, to 5,898.61.

Slightly more stocks fell than rose on the New York Stock Exchange, and the Russell 2000 index, which contains smaller-company stocks, lost 1.49 points, or 0.1 percent, to 1,368.18.

This week investors will pore over reports on the U.S. economy, including the monthly jobs report on Friday. Trade agreements will be in focus as President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping meet Thursday and Friday. Benchmark U.S. crude rose 79 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $51.03 per barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, added $1.05, or 2 percent, to $54.17 a barrel in London. Anadarko Petroleum added 92 cents, or 1.5 percent, to $62.71.

The price of natural gas jumped 4.6 percent to $3.27 per 1,000 cubic feet, and Southwestern Energy climbed 70 cents, or 8.9 percent, to $8.59 while Range Resources gained $1.19, or 4.2 percent, to $29.76. Wholesale gasoline rose 3 cents to $1.72 a gallon and heating oil added 3 cents to $1.59 a gallon.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.36 percent from 2.33 percent.

Banks took losses for the second day in a row following a sharp drop in bond yields Monday. Lower bond yields force interest rates on loans lower, which cuts into banks’ profits. Capital One Financial slid 54 cents to $85.26 and Discover Financial Services lost 90 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $67.05.

The Commerce Department said U.S. factory orders kept growing in February thanks to greater demand for commercial aircraft. Boeing said it will sell $3 billion in aircraft to an Iranian airline, and its stock gained $2.05, or 1.2 percent, to $178.70.

Gold rose $4.40 to $1,258.40 an ounce. Silver added 11 cents to $18.32 an ounce. Copper rose 1 cent to $2.61 per pound.