US shares mixed as euro, commodities peak

US shares closed narrowly mixed Monday as the euro, oil and gold hit new peaks and consumers slammed the brakes on auto sales amid a severe housing slump and credit crunch.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 7.49 points (0.06 percent) to close at 12,258.90 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq shed 12.88 points (0.57 percent) to 2,258.60.
The Nasdaq earlier had sunk to 2,240.30 points, its lowest point since October 2006.
The Standard Poor's 500 broad-market index edged up 0.71 point (0.05 percent) to finish at 1,331.34.
"The major stock averages made a late comeback, but the new month still began on a down note on Wall Street as commodity prices marched higher and analysts cut profit estimates for securities firms," said Al Goldman, chief market strategist at AG Edwards.
Commodities got a lift as the dollar fell to a record low against the euro. Oil prices rallied to all-time peaks in London and New York, at 103.95 dollars and 102.29, respectively.
Ministers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cartel, arriving in Vienna for a policy meeting Wednesday, dismissed calls for a hike in oil production despite new record prices.
Gold gained a boost as a safe-haven investment in the face of economic uncertainty as markets worried about a potential US recession.
Warren Buffett, the legendary billionaire US investor, fed red meat to the bears, saying the American economy was already in a recession.
Asked in a CNBC business television interview whether he thought the economy was in a recession, Buffett responded: "I think it's clear. What isn't clear, is how far it goes."
David Evans, a market analyst at BetOnMarkets.com, said this had contributed to the negative sentiment in Europe and the US.
"When Buffett speaks, people listen. Unfortunately, today he had little to say that was positive about the US economy," he said.
Two bleak economic reports also weighed on sentiment.
A key nationwide manufacturing sector survey by the Institute of Supply Management showed activity shrank in February for the second time in three months. Another report showed that January construction spending fell more than twice as fast as expected to a level not seen since 2005.
Among stocks in focus, Boeing shares were clipped 2.56 percent at 80.67 dollars and Northrop Grumman soared 5.04 percent to 82.57. The US Air Force surprisingly snubbed Boeing late Friday for a 35-billion-dollar aerial refueling tanker contract that Northrop and the European Aerospace Defence and Space Company won.