Oil price rise pushes US stocks lower

Wall Street slipped lower but still held on to most of its recent gains today as investors, their confidence in the economy growing, reacted calmly to oil prices that approached US$60 (€49.36) per barrel.

Building on last week’s surge in energy prices, crude oil futures reached a new intraday record of US$59.52 (€48.96) per barrel, heightening worries that higher prices at the pump would hurt consumer spending and slow economic growth.