Stocks waver; signs on the economy hard to read

Memorial Day travelers bemoan high gas prices

Norm Hayward and his wife, Claudia, have a couple of things going for them as they continue their increasingly expensive motor home trip around parts of the United States. For starters, the Phoenix, Ariz., couple are saving on hotel costs.

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August 9, 2012

Stocks waver; signs on the economy hard to read

Anonymous From The Associated Press The Joplin Globe Thu Aug 09, 2012, 03:29 PM CDT

NEW YORK — U.S. stocks are closing mixed after flitting all day between tiny gains and losses. The Dow Jones industrial average is closing down 10 points to 13,165, a move of just 0.08 percent.

Moves in other indexes were also incremental. The Standard & Poor’s 500 rose about half a point to close at 1,403. The Nasdaq composite rose seven to 3,019.

Volume was 3 billion shares, well below the recent average. On the New York Stock Exchange, slightly more stocks rose than fell.

The U.S. reported that its trade deficit fell to the lowest level in 18 months. But China, which has been a major driver of the world economy, showed its own signs of slowing down. It reported lower growth in auto sales and factory output.

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