(MENAFN- ProactiveInvestors)CLOSE US shares remained mixed at the close as traders eyed a falling oil price and better than expected US Inflation stats. The Dow Jones closed 21 down at 16 392 while the Nasdaq got a boost as tech stocks did well - up 16 at 4504. The S&P500 closed flat at 1018. US inflation rose more than had been expected in January as the fall in energy prices eased official figures showed. It means the Fed rate rise question comes into view again as this increase makes a rise more likely. Alistair McCaig at spreadbetter IG Index noted that even the strongest monthly retail sales figures for the UK in two years has not been enough to inject enthusiasm into the markets. "Oil remains close to $30 as traders have been unconvinced by developments from the major oil-producing nations. "An agreement that didn't include Iran in the first place and peppered with caveats and loopholes has prevented spot prices from falling but done nothing to address the longer term issue of oversupply" he added. ------------------- OPEN US shares were mixed at the open with the focus back on the oil price again. The Dow Jones was down 47 at 16366 the Nasdaq added over 12 at 4500 and the S&P500 lost three to stand at 1915. Driving crude lower was latest data showing US stockpiles had built up to record levels fuelling the fears of the glut despite talk of stemming output. Crude stocks rose last week by 2.1mln barrels to a record 504.1 million data from the US government's Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed yesterday. US benchmark crude at spot price went down below the US$30 level again - to stand at US$29.28 - a drop of near on 5% on the day. Also investor attention is trained towards Europe where David Cameron UK Prime Minister is locked in talks in Brussels over his EU reform plans. On the plus side tech shares were performing better supported by the 8.3% rise in Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT). The firm released its fourth-quarter earnings after market close and beat analyst estimates on revenue and EPS.
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