Stocks slide after gloomy report on retail sales

(AP) Stocks indexes are lower in light trading on Wall Street at midday.

Strong earnings from Abercrombie & Fitch are being offset by a gloomy report on retail spending from the government.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 55 points at 12,701 at noon Wednesday.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index slipped four points to 1,370 and the Nasdaq composite was down three points at 2,881.

Abercrombie & Fitch, maker of clothing for teenagers, was among the standout stocks, jumping 27 percent after reporting that its net income soared in the most recent quarter.

The strong results were tempered by a report from the Commerce Department saying that Americans cut back on spending in October.