U.S. stocks close higher as oil price falls; GM loses 5%

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks closed slightly higher on Wednesday, as a big drop in crude oil prices and better-than-expected earnings from Dell Inc. offset an unexpected drop in consumer confidence and weakness in the shares of General Motors Corp. With trading volumes thin ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 5 points to 12,326. It earlier reached an all-time intraday high of 12,361.Positive momentum came as crude oil dropped - the January futures contract lost 93 cents to close at $59.24 -- following bearish inventory data from the American Petroleum Institute and the Energy Department.
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