Stocks Opened Lower, Oil Dropped

U.S. stocks opened lower on Wednesday as a drop in oil prices weighed on the main indexes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately retreated 52.82 points, or 0.26%, to 20,037.47. The S&P 500 shed 4.20 points, or 0.18%, to 2,288.88. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 13.35 points, or 0.24%, to 5,660.86.

Crude prices deepened this week’s drop on Wednesday as a larger-than-expected increase in U.S. crude stocks reinforced views that American oil producers could thwart efforts reduce global oversupply. Light, sweet crude futures for delivery in March traded at $51.83 a barrel, down 33 cents, or 0.6%. April Brent crude fell 20 cents, or 0.4%, to $54.84 a barrel.