US indexes edge lower; travel companies sink after attacks

U.S. stock indexes edged mostly lower in midday trading Tuesday as airlines, cruise companies and travel booking sites declined following the attacks in Belgium. European markets fell slightly. Oil prices veered lower.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average fell 20 points, or 0.1 percent, to 17,602 as of 12:20 p.m. Eastern Time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index shed less than one point to 2,049. The Nasdaq composite gained three points, or 0.1 percent, to 4,812.

THE QUOTE: “The only sector that appears to be truly suffering, naturally, is anything having to do with travel,” said J.J. Kinahan, TD Ameritrade’s chief strategist. “And even many of those have recovered from earlier levels.”

BRUSSELS ATTACKS: At least 31 people were killed on Tuesday when bombs struck the Brussels airport and one of the city’s metro stations. Belgium raised its terror alert to the highest level. Airports across Europe tightened security. Germany’s DAX was down 0.2 percent, while the CAC-40 in France was 0.4 percent lower. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was down 0.1 percent. Belgium’s BEL 20 index fell 0.1 percent.

STAYING PUT: Several travel-related companies fell as investors weighed the potential fallout from the Belgium attacks. Royal Caribbean Cruises shed $3.05, or 3.9 percent, to $75.18, while Carnival lost $1.71, or 3.4 percent, to $48.07. American Airlines Group fell 76 cents, or 1.7 percent, to $42.71. Delta Air Lines fell $1.02, or 2 percent, to $49.10. Priceline Group slid $40.33, or 3 percent, to $1,310.18, while Expedia fell $2.32, or 2.1 percent, to $108.56.

DRILL BITTEN: Transocean shed 55 cents, or 5.2 percent, to $9.98 a day after management said they don’t expect drilling to increase any time soon. The outlook also weighed on other drilling companies. Ensco lost 43 cents, or 3.8 percent, to $10.90, while Helmerich & Payne slid $1.27, or 2.1 percent, to $59.71.

ROUGH QUARTER: Clothing and accessories maker G-III Apparel Group slid 18.5 percent after it reported earnings and sales that fell short of Wall Street’s expectations. The stock lost $10.19 to $45.04.

LUMPY RESULTS: Mattress Firm dropped 13 percent after the bedding retailer also reported weak fourth-quarter results and forecast a smaller-than-expected annual profit. The stock shed $5.56 to $37.13.

STRONG OUTLOOK: Akorn surged 37.4 percent after the generic drugmaker reported preliminary 2015 financial results and gave a strong profit forecast for this year. The stock gained $7.01 to $25.73.

BOUNCE BACK: Staples climbed 5.3 percent, recovering some of its losses from a day earlier, when a court battle over the office supply chain’s proposed merger with Office Depot began. The stock added 51 cents to $10.07.

ASIA’S DAY: Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 1.9 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index shed early gains, sliding 0.1 percent. South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.4 percent, while Australia’s S&P ASX 200 edged up 0.1 percent.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude was down 29 cents to $41.23 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the benchmark for international oils, was up 14 cents to $41.68 a barrel in London.

BONDS AND CURRENCIES: U.S. government bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 1.89 percent from 1.92 percent late Monday. The euro was down to $1.1223 from $1.1242, while the dollar fell to 111.81 yen from 112.08.