NEW YORK (AP) -- U.S stocks are struggling for direction, with the debt maelstrom in Europe as an ominous backdrop.
Major stock indexes opened lower, then edged higher but just for a short time. Shortly before noon Wednesday, the Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor's 500 were down, while the Nasdaq composite index managed to hang onto its gain.
The Dow was down 18 points to 12,556, the S&P 500 lost 2 points to 1,322, and the Nasdaq composite index inched up 1 point to 2,844.
Investors are unnerved because borrowing costs for Italy and Spain are up, a sign that investors aren't sure that those countries can pay back their debt. In the U.S., the government says retail sales fell in April and May.