Stocks – S&P Struggles to a Tiny Gain; Boeing Rises

Investing.com – Stocks finished the day barely higher as bad news for computer chips was offset by gains for Boeing (NYSE:), whose bad news on the 737 Max wasn’t as bad as feared.

The ended the day up 0.28% and closed above 3,000 for the second time in three days.

The , meanwhile, added 0.17%, thanks to a late flurry of buying. And the rose 0.19%.

Materials, healthcare and energy were the stronger sectors in the market. The laggards were consumer discretionary, real estate, industrials and technology.

Techs were pulled lower by semiconductors after weak earnings and a gloomy outlook late Tuesday from Texas Instruments (NASDAQ:). TI was off 7.5% and the fell 1.9%.

Boeing moved up 1% because the company’s results weren’t as bad as investors feared. But it did announce it will cut back production of its 787 Dreamliner because of weakness in global markets for widebody jets.

It still expects to get the 737 Max back into the air late this year, although many airlines aren’t expecting to fly the jet before the end of January.

Retailers overall were weak, led by Gap (NYSE:) and Target (NYSE:). Beyond Meat (NASDAQ:) fell 8% and ended under $100 for the first time since early June. The shares are off more than 59% since peaking on July 26.

Rising oil prices helped energy stocks move higher, thanks to a surprise draw on . Exxon Mobil (NYSE:) rose 1%. Chesapeake Energy (NYSE:), Devon Energy (NYSE:) and Apache (NYSE:) all moved solidly higher.

crude rose $1.49 to $55.97 a barrel. crude added $1.47 to $61.17.

and other metals moved up as global trade and political concerns weighed on the market.

Alexion Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:), pest-control maker Rollins (NYSE:), adhesives maker Avery Dennison (NYSE:) and scientific instrument maker Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:) were the top S&P 500 performers.

Texas Instruments (NASDAQ:), Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:), chip maker Analog Devices (NASDAQ:) and Maxim Integrated Products (NASDAQ:) were the laggards.

Interest rates were off slightly.

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