US stock indexes bust records as oil prices jump

Benchmark U.S. crude oil rose to its highest price this month. It gained $1.80, or 3.9 per cent, to $47.49 a barrel while Brent crude, the international standard, rose $2.04, or 4.4 per cent, to $48.90 a barrel in London. That led to gains for energy companies. Marathon Oil added 86 cents, or 5.5 per cent, to $16.48 and Exxon Mobil added $1.21, or 1.4 per cent, to $86.49.

OPEC representatives will meet in Vienna on Nov. 30. They have agreed to preliminary terms of a deal that will trim oil production, but the details remain to be determined. Quincy Krosby, market strategist at Prudential Financial, said investors are encouraged by the effort, but she doesn’t think a deal, if one happens, will have much effect on oil prices.

“There’s nothing to suggest the agreement’s going to hold,” she said. “When all is said and done, supply and demand will ultimately dictate the price.”

Meat producer Tyson Foods tumbled $9.76, or 14.5 per cent, to $57.60. The company’s fourth-quarter profit and sales fell far short of Wall Street’s forecasts as Tyson’s chicken business struggled. The company also said CEO Donnie Smith will step down at the end of this year, and company president Tom Hayes will replace him.

Competitor Hormel Foods lost 64 cents, or 1.8 per cent, to $34.94.

Small-company stocks have surged since the election. The Russell 2000 has risen for 12 days in a row.

Technology stocks also made substantial gains. They have lagged the market since the election after very strong performance over the summer. Facebook rose $4.75, or 4.1 per cent, to $121.77 while online payments company PayPal advanced 55 cents, or 1.4 per cent, to $40.63 and Apple picked up $1.69, or 1.5 per cent, to $111.75.

Identity theft and fraud protection company LifeLock jumped $3.06, or 14.7 per cent, to $23.81 after security software maker Symantec agreed to buy the company for $2.3 billion. The deal values LifeLock at $24 a share. Symantec picked up 77 cents, or 3.2 per cent, to $24.52, a sign investors approve of the purchase.

Sunoco Logistics agreed to buy Energy Transfer Partners in an all-stock deal worth about $20 billion. Both companies are involved in the Dakota Access oil pipeline, a project that’s been the subject of protests for months. A portion of that pipeline would pump oil under Lake Oahe, a reservoir in North Dakota, and the local Standing Rock Sioux tribe says it fears a leak could contaminate the drinking water on its reservation. The tribe also says the pipeline could disturb sacred sites.

Both companies traded lower after the deal was announced, as they won’t distribute as much cash to shareholders after combining. Energy Transfer Partners lost $2.85, or 7.2 per cent, to $36.52 and Sunoco Logistics skidded $1.72, or 6.6 per cent, to $24.47. Energy Transfer Equity, the general partner of Energy Transfer Partners, picked up 63 cents, or 3.6 per cent, to $17.92.

Gold inched up $1.10 to $1,209.80 an ounce. Silver lost 10 cents to $16.52 an ounce. Copper climbed 5 cents, or 1.9 per cent, to $2.52 a pound.

The dollar slipped after trading at 13-year highs last week. The euro rose to $1.0612 from $1.0599. The dollar rose to 111.07 yen from 110.63 yen.

Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note slipped to 2.32 per cent from 2.35 per cent. That helped utility stocks. They stocks tend to do better when bond yields fall because investors seeking income buy them for their big dividends.

In other energy trading, wholesale gasoline gained 6 cents, or 4.3 per cent, to $1.40 a gallon. Heating oil rose 7 cents, or 4.6 per cent, to $1.52 per gallon. Natural gas rose 11 cents, or 4 per cent, to $2.95 per 1,000 cubic feet.

France’s CAC-40 index rose 0.6 per cent while the DAX of Germany picked up 0.2 per cent. The FTSE 100 index in Britain rose less than 0.1 per cent. The Nikkei 225 of Japan rose 0.8 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi dipped 0.4 per cent and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong edged up less than 0.1 per cent.

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AP Markets Writer Marley Jay can be reached at http://twitter.com/MarleyJayAP His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/marley-jay

Marley Jay, The Associated Press

by Canadian Press

US stock indexes bust records as oil prices jump

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