Stocks edge higher, oil falls as volatility hits Wall Street

By DAMIAN J. TROISE and ALEX VEIGA
AP Business Writers

Stock indexes edged higher in afternoon trading Wednesday as Wall Street shook off a bout of volatility driven in part by big swings in technology companies. The S&P 500 rose 0.2%. The benchmark index has risen or fallen by more than 1% the past four days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.2% and the Nasdaq was up 0.3% after wobbling between small gains and losses in the early going. International markets also sold off, with exchanges in Japan, South Korea, Germany and France all dropping more than 1%. Energy prices are retreating after a strong rally that contributed to renewed inflation fears among investors. U.S. oil fell 2% and natural gas plunged 9.7%