Wall St closes mixed

Wall Street ended an erratic session narrowly mixed today, largely shrugging off a lacklustre sales report from Wal-Mart Stores and news of weak consumer spending last month.

The market’s ability to withstand bad news – especially from Wal-Mart, seen by many traders as a barometer of consumer sentiment – illustrates the confidence many investors seem to have in the overall direction of the economy and Wall Street itself.