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Blue chips drive Dow
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December 29, 1998: 5:10 p.m. ET
Investors fuel Dow winning streak and give the S&P 500 a new record high
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Blue chips were the darlings of Wall Street in trading Tuesday, giving the Dow Jones industrial average a record eight-day winning streak and setting a new milestone for the S&P 500.
The Dow closed up 94.23, or about 1 percent, at 9,320.98, marking the first time since 1996 that it has risen for eight straight trading days. The benchmark index also came close to its record high of 9,374.27 set on Nov. 23.
Advances led declines 1,738 to 1,263 on a trading volume of 589 million shares on the New York Stock Exchange.
The Nasdaq composite struggled through the day but rallied near the close and ended up 1.47 at 2,181.77, edging past its record of 2,180.30 set Monday.
The S&P 500 index jumped 16.32, or about 1.3 percent, to 1,241.81, and set a new record. The S&P's previous record was 1,228.54 set last Wednesday.
"This has been an amazing market -- a 'Benny Goodman' market with plenty of swing," said Alan Ackerman, senior vice president and market strategist at Fahnestock & Co. "My sense is mood, momentum and money flow are still up."
Investors seemed heartened by news that U.S. consumers maintained a higher-than-expected level of confidence in the economy. Likewise, existing home sales far exceeded estimates and rose 2.7 percent because of the strong economy, good consumer confidence and low mortgage rates.
Bonds regained some momentum after a sell-off of Japanese government bonds. The 30-year Treasury bond was up 27/32 of a point in price for a yield of 5.09 percent.
The dollar was weaker amid speculation about whether Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin will remain on the job, but steadied on the good economic news. The dollar fetched 1.67 marks and 115.49 yen.
Overseas, Tokyo stocks climbed 1 percent while Hong Kong edged up slightly and Singapore fell amid a post-holiday lull. In Europe, most bourses made gentle gains in light trading as investors prepared for the launch of the euro this weekend. Brazil's Bovespa dropped 4 percent before paring its losses.
Meanwhile, investors around the world had their eyes on oil amid renewed tension between the United States and Iraq. Oil prices surged 4 percent.
On Wall Street
Blue chips decided to build on seven straight positive closes after opening lower. Dow members American Express (AXP) added 3-1/16 to 105, while Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) gained 3-3/16 to 83-3/4.
The Nasdaq couldn't hang on to its momentum after reaching a new high Monday, aided by reports of stellar online holiday sales. The index struggled in negative territory most of Tuesday before ending in the black.
Microsoft (MSFT) lost 1-7/8 at 140-1/2, while Cisco Systems (CSCO) gave up 11/16 at 93-1/2.
Volatile Internet stocks also showed their colors, with shares of eBay (EBAY), which operates an online trading room, down 11-11/16 at 273-15/16. Search engine Yahoo (YHOO) dropped 5-1/2 at 270, while online bookseller Amazon.com (AMZN) lost 19-5/8 at 332-5/16. America Online (AOL) gave up 2-5/8 at 154-5/8. All of the stocks had healthy gains on Monday.
In the beaten-down oil sector, stocks were mixed as some companies couldn't seem to benefit from rising prices. Chevron (CHV) fell 3/16 at 85-1/8, while Mobil Corp. (MOB) added 1-5/8 at 89-11/16 and Exxon (XON) gained 1-1/8 to 75-5/8.
Conoco (COC), a former oil and gas subsidiary of DuPont that went public in October, rebounded Tuesday after announcing a cost-cutting plan because of flat oil prices. The plan includes 975 layoffs, a $50 million charge and a 21 percent capital budget cut in 1999. The stock was up 3/16 at 21.
Halliburton Co. (HAL), the world's largest provider of products and services to the petroleum and energy industries, fell on news of a $35 million earnings charge to cover the costs of 2,750 layoffs in one of its businesses. The company blames low crude-oil prices for a downturn in demand. The stock was down 2-9/16, almost 8 percent, at 30-3/8.
And Halter Marine Group (HLX), a maker of offshore drilling rigs and ships, gave up almost 16 percent after saying earnings for the third quarter ending Dec. 31 will fall below analysts' estimates. The company blamed low oil prices for a lower revenue outlook. The stock was off 7/8 at 4-3/4.
In other earnings news, Network Equipment Technologies Inc. (NWK) dropped 2-1/16, or almost 16 percent, to 11-3/16 after reporting that third-quarter results will fall "significantly" below market estimates because of turmoil in Pacific markets
Finally, shares of medical imager ADAC Laboratories (ADAC) lost 5-1/4, or about 19 percent, to 21-7/8 after announcing accounting problems.
(Click here for a look at today's CNNfn market movers).
-- by staff writer Martine Costello
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