Stocks rise at the open
Major indexes advance as investors respond to mixed economic data. Markets will close early.
NEW�YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks opened higher Wednesday as investors picked through a slew of economic reports released before the holiday-shortened session got underway.
The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) rose 0.4% shortly after the opening bell. The Standard & Poor's 500 (SPX) index was up 0.25% and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) was a few points higher.
Stocks fell Tuesday in another thinly traded session after two housing reports showed declines in sales of new and existing homes. A government report also showed the economy contracted in line with economists' expectations.
Stocks in London and Paris ended lower, with Frankfurt closed for an extended holiday. Asian stocks finished mostly lower.
U.S. markets close at 1 p.m. ET for the start of the Christmas holiday. The markets are all shut Thursday for Christmas, and will be open all day Friday.
Jobs: The Department of Labor said the number of people filing initial unemployment claims rose more than expected last week.
New jobless claims rose to 586,000 in the week ended Dec. 20. That's an increase of 30,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 556,000, and is more than the 558,000 total forecast by economists.
Wednesday's report revealed the highest number of jobless claims since Nov. 27, 1982, when initial filings hit 612,000.
Durable goods: New orders of durable manufactured goods fell for the fourth month in a row, according to the Census Bureau.
Durable goods orders fell 1% to $1.9 billion in November. Excluding orders related to transportation, new orders increased 1.2%.
Still, the decline was not as sharp as had been expected. Economists had forecast goods orders to sink 3.1% after plummeting 6.2% in October - the biggest decline since 2006.
Personal spending and income: The Commerce Department said both personal income and spending decreased in November.
Personal income dipped 0.2% after a modest 0.3% increase in October. The reading was expected to be flat.
Personal spending fell 0.6% versus a decline of 1% the month before. But the figure was better than the 0.8% decline that economists were expecting.
Oil inventories: A 10:35 a.m. ET Department of Energy report is expected to show that crude oil stockpiles rose by 1.5 million barrels last week, according to analysts surveyed by information firm Platts. Oil investors also forecast a 900,000-barrel increase in gasoline supplies and a 1.4 million barrel increase in supplies of distillates, which are used to make diesel fuel and home heating oil.
Other markets: Light, sweet crude for February delivery was down $1.48 to $37.50 a barrel in New York.
The dollar fell versus the euro and the yen.
Bond prices were mixed. The 5-year note fell after Tuesday's record auction, but the benchmark 10-year note was up 14/32 to 114 11/32 with a yield of 2.14%.
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