Energy shares lift U.S. stocks
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E-mail Xinhua, March 24, 2012
U.S. stocks erased early losses and ended modestly higher on Friday as the surge in oil prices gave a lift to the related energy stocks.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 34.59 points, or 0.27 percent, to 13,080.73. The Standard & Poor's 500 was up 4.33 points, or 0.31 percent, to 1,397.11. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 4.60 points, or 0.15 percent, to 3,067.92.
Stocks went lower during morning trading after latest data showed that the housing market was still struggling.
According to the Commerce Department, new home sales fell 1.6 percent in February from January, the second straight decline and the lowest level since October.
However, a surge in the oil market help erase early losses after a report showed that Iran's oil export fell sharply in March due to sanctions from the West.
Industry consultant Petrologistics said on Friday that Iran, the second largest OPEC oil exporter, shipped 300,000 barrels fewer per day this month, or 14 percent lower. It was the first sizable drop in Iranian oil export this year, which meant less supplies in the market.
Light, sweet crude for May delivery gained 1.52 dollars, or 1. 44 percent to settle at 106.87 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, bringing related energy stocks higher in afternoon trading.
Among stocks in focus, Chinese online retailer Vipshop made its debut on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday, marking the first Chinese Initial Public Offering (IPO) in the U.S. stock market in more than seven months.
Shares of Vipshop tumbled more than 15 percent and ended at 5.5 dollars a share, showing investors were still cautious toward the internet start-up with robust growth but weak profits.
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