Stocks decline modestly in early trading on mixed earnings; investors grow cautious

Stocks fall modestly in early trading

NEW YORK — Stocks are falling modestly in early trading despite a better-than-expected report on retail sales.

The U.S. market has risen sharply throughout the spring and summer on hopes of a recovery. Now investors are looking for evidence of a rebound, having slowed the market’s surge as they hunt for signs of improvement.

The Commerce Department says retail sales climbed 2.7 percent last month, faster than the 2 percent jump expected by economists polled by Thomson Reuters.

The Dow Jones industrial average is down 11.71, 0.1 percent, at 9,615.09. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index is down 1.27, or 0.1 percent, at 1,048.07, while the Nasdaq composite index is down 1.42, or 0.1 percent, at 2,090.36.