Stocks slide as investors seek safety after weak sales data

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are mostly lower Wednesday as energy companies tumble along with oil prices and investors look for safety following a drop in retail sales last month. It was the first decline in more than a year, and investors are buying government bonds and high-dividend stocks. The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates later in the day.

KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index dipped 1 point, or 0.1 percent, to 2,438 as of 1:30 p.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average picked up 17 points, or 0.1 percent, to 21,345. The Nasdaq composite added 2 points to 6,222.

Small-company stocks fell more than the rest of the market. The Russell 2000 index sank 10 points, or 0.7 percent, to 1,416. That suggests investors are worried about the economy, which could have an outsize effect on smaller, domestically-focused companies.

More stocks fell than rose on the New York Stock Exchange. The S&P 500, Dow and Russell all closed at record highs Tuesday. The Nasdaq isn't far from the record it set last week, but it was hit particularly hard by the steep sell-off in technology companies Friday and Monday.

RETAIL SALES: The Commerce Department said people spent less money at gas stations, department stores and electronics retailers last month. The result was a surprise to analysts, who expected sales to grow. Video game seller GameStop gave up 63 cents, or 2.9 percent, to $21.35 and department store chain Kohl's dropped 87 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $37.17. Foot Locker declined $1.10, or 2 percent, to $54.

Elsewhere, the Labor Department said consumer prices slipped, mostly thanks to lower energy prices. That showed how little inflation there has been in the economy, a continued concern for Federal Reserve policymakers.

REACTION: Bond prices jumped and yields fell to their lowest level since November. Concerned about weak growth, investors bought bonds and high-yield stocks. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.12 percent from 2.21 percent. Utilities and household goods makers climbed.

Cereal maker General Mills rose 74 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $58.91 and PepsiCo advanced $1.52, or 1.3 percent, to $117.84. NextEra Energy, the parent of Florida Power & Light, jumped $1.42, or 1 percent, to $141.37 and American Water Works rose 93 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $81.11.

Banks fell. The drop in bond yields sent interest rates lower, which reduces the profits banks can make from mortgages and other loans. Citizens Financial dropped 98 cents, or 2.7 percent, to $35.90 and Lincoln National lost $1.49, or 2.3 percent, to $67.06.

COMMODITIES: Oil futures plunged after the U.S. government gave its weekly update on fuel stockpiles. The Energy Information Administration said oil supplies shrank slightly and gasoline stockpiles grew last week. Benchmark U.S. crude fell $1.67, or 3.6 percent, to $44.80 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, shed $1.66, or 3.4 percent, to $47.06 a barrel in London.

Exxon Mobil lost $1.09, or 1.3 percent, to $81.87 and Halliburton sank $1.37, or 3 percent, to $44.47.

FED WATCH: The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates Wednesday afternoon. That would be the third increase since December. But Wall Street is attuned to signs of weaker economic growth, and the combination of sluggish growth and high interest rates, which slow the economy down, may have worried investors.

CURRENCY: The dollar slid to 109.18 yen from 109.96 yen. The euro jumped to $1.1267 from $1.1212.

THE REAL WORLD: Real estate investment trusts also traded higher. That was partly because investors bought them for their hefty dividend payments and partly because they were hoping for deals. Reuters reported Wednesday that Brookdale Senior Living could be acquired by Zhongzhong Zhuoe Group. Brookdale, which is not itself a real estate investment trust, jumped $1.12, or 8 percent, to $15.19.

Senior housing and health care REIT Welltower gained 42 cents to $74.56 and senior housing REIT Ventas picked up 62 cents to $68.88. Among other real estate companies, wireless communication tower company Crown Castle International gained 69 cents to $101.87.

BLOCK PARTY: Tax preparer H&R Block posted a bigger profit than analysts expected as well as slightly stronger sales. Its shares climbed $2.45, or 9.1 percent, to $29.44.

JOB POSTING: Biotech drugmaker Biogen fell and competitor Alexion Pharmaceuticals rose after the companies said Biogen Chief Financial Officer Paul Clancy will become Alexion's CFO at the end of July. Analysts said Wall Street has a great deal of respect for Clancy, who has been Biogen's CFO for 10 years.

Matthew Harrison of Morgan Stanley said some investors may be worried that Clancy's departure is a warning sign about an Alzheimer's disease drug Biogen is developing, but Harrison said there is no connection.

Biogen gave up $7.49, or 2.9 percent, to $253.93 and Alexion jumped $8.75, or 8.1 percent, to $116.75.

OVERSEAS: Germany's DAX advanced 0.3 percent and the CAC-40 in France lost 0.4 percent. The British FTSE 100 fell 0.3 percent. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 retreated 0.1 percent and the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong advanced 0.1 percent. In South Korea the Kospi retreated 0.1 percent.

AP Markets Writer Marley Jay can be reached at http://twitter.com/MarleyJayAP His work can be found at https://apnews.com/search/marley%20jay