Stocks Advance on Oil?s Slide, Gas Prices Jump

[Stocks-to-Watch]

TGIF: After a week of selling, stocks were finally moving upward on Friday, as oil retreated from its $100 highs not seen since 2008.

Recently, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) was up 81 points, as crude oil traded to $97 a barrel. Although protests in Libya spread even to the former Gadhafi stronghold of Tripoli, investors were calmed by pledges from other oil-producing nations to make up for any lost output.

Libya, which normally produces approximately 1.3 million barrels of oil a day, has virtually halted production. However, Saudi Arabia, which earlier in the week moved to calm fears about prices, is said to have increased production by 8% to more than 9 million barrels a day. Still, the* Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries has yet to agree to a formal output increase and has not said it will convene ahead of its scheduled June meeting.

Gas prices have finally caught up with soaring oil, jumping six cents overnight to a nationwide average of $3.29 cents a gallon, according to the American Automobile Association. Gas prices had already crept up another six cents earlier in the week, and experts expect further increases in the next few days.

Many economists are worried that high fuel prices could crimp a recovery. However, two metrics out this week, although completed before the spike in oil prices, showed consumer sentiment and confidence at three-year highs.

Elsewhere in the market, some of yesterday’s laggards regained ground. General Motors (GM) was up 1% in afternoon trading, while Intel (INTC) moved up 3%.* Boeing (BA) also gained nearly 3% after winning a $30+ billion contract from the Pentagon.



Original Article Source by Barrons.com