U.S. stocks mostly lower; energy prices plunge

NEW YORK – Stocks closed mostly lower Monday after another steep drop in oil and natural gas prices pulled energy companies down.

Prices for crude oil and natural gas each slumped about 6 percent Monday, the latest blow to the beleaguered energy sector.

Oil and gas companies took heavy losses. Devon Energy sank 7 percent and Murphy Oil lost 6 percent.

Not all the news was bad. Aetna jumped 2 percent after reporting solid earnings.

The Dow Jones industrial average edged down 17 points, or 0.1 percent, to 16,449.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index lost less than a point to 1,939. The Nasdaq composite edged up six points, or 0.1 percent, to 4,620.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 1.96 percent.