US stocks finish flat

Wall Street was essentially flat today, after struggling to resume a modest upward trend while investors juggled upbeat economic data, divergent earnings reports and a pullback in Chinese stocks.

The Dow Jones industrials edged higher to a record close for the second straight day. While a mix of profit reports pushed and tugged at stocks today, investors also watched markets abroad, where stocks fell following word that economic growth in China’s first quarter jumped a higher-than-expected 11.1% and inflation increased at its fastest pace in more than two years.