Stock Market News For May 31, 2017

Benchmarks finished in the red on Tuesday dragged down primarily by energy shares. Investors raised doubts whether OPEC and non-OPEC players including Russia will be able to implement an effective production cut policy to stabilize the global crude market. Meanwhile, investors remained focused on geopolitical developments centered on North Korea’s claim of its missile launch. Investors also digested a bag of economic data.

For a look at the issues currently facing the markets, make sure to read today’s Ahead of Wall Street article.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) declined 0.2% to close at 21,029.47. The S&P 500 fell 0.1% to close at 2,412.91. The tech-laden Nasdaq Composite Index declined 0.1% to close at 6,203.19. A total of around 5.7 billion shares were traded on Tuesday, lower than the last 20-session average of 6.7 billion shares. Decliners outnumbered advancing stocks on the NYSE by a 1.58 to 1 ratio.

Energy Shares Drop

Oil prices declined on Tuesday following a rise in concerns about production cuts by the world’s leading exporters may not be enough to stabilize the global crude market and reduce global oil inventories. The signs of increasing crude output in Libya also had a negative impact on the oil prices. As per the chief of the state-run National Oil Corporation, Libya's oil production was recorded to be 784,000 barrels per day (bpd) due to a technical issue at its Sharara field, but production was expected to start expanding to 800,000 bpd on Tuesday.

WTI crude prices declined by $0.14, or 0.3%, to $49.66 a barrel. The broader Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE (NYSE:XLE)) fell 1.3%, emerging as the worst performing sector of S&P 500. Some of the key holdings of the energy sector in the S&P 500 including Exxon Mobil Corp (NYSE:XOM) and Chevron Corp (NYSE:CVX) both declined by 0.6%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Political Tensions

Investors kept a close watch on the recent claim made by North Korea about its third missile launch in as many weeks. On Tuesday, North Korea claimed it has enhanced its ability to fire long-range ballistic missiles accurately.

Moreover, reports about President Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner’s consideration of creating a secret channel of communication with Russia during the presidential transition also raised concerns among investors.

Economic Data

As per Bureau of Economic Analysis, Personal income rose 0.4% in April, in line with expectations. Additionally, personal spending also increased 0.4% which also came in line with expectations. Separately, personal-consumption expenditures saw an increase of 0.2% in the month.

Stocks that made Headlines

Ensco to Acquire Atwood in All-Stock Deal Worth $839M

Offshire drillers Ensco plc (NYSE:ESV) and Atwood Oceanics Inc. (NYSE:ATW) jointly declared their definitive merger agreement. (Read More)

Ulta Beauty Stock Up On Q1 Earnings Beat, Raised View

Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) , which has been delivering positive earnings and sales surprises consistently for over three years, posted stellar results for first-quarter fiscal 2017. (Read More)

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