|
Show of strength in stocks
|
 |
February 16, 1999: 11:56 a.m. ET
Rallying bonds and firmer dollar help Wall St. start the week with a rally
|
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - U.S. stocks moved off their highs but remained strong in midday trading Tuesday, powered by rallying bonds and dollar markets and an interest in bargain hunting after last week's choppy market performance.
Shortly before 11:30 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 76.73 points at 9,351.62. On the New York Stock Exchange, advances outnumbered declines 1,691 to 1,081 as 266 million shares changed hands.
The Nasdaq Composite, last week's most volatile market index, surged 34.71, or 1.4 percent, to 2,356.60. The S&P 500 index gained 19.80, or 1.5 percent, to 1,249.93. (Click here for a look at today's CNNfn market movers)
The bond market soared, supported by a stronger dollar and an overnight decline in the yields of Japanese government bonds. The benchmark 30-year Treasury bond traded 25/32 of a point higher in price, lowering the yield to 5.37 percent.
The dollar soared to a two-month high against the yen after Japanese officials said overnight that Tokyo would be willing to accept a weaker yen as a result of last week's short-term interest-rate cut there. The dollar also rose against the euro.
Techs on the rebound
Technology stocks once again took center stage, rallying as investors picked bargains among the sector's blue-chip members and braced to learn the latest earnings of two technology leaders -- Dell and Hewlett Packard -- after the closing bell.
Shares of Dell Computer (DELL) gained 3-3/16 to 93-1/16. The stock lost nearly 12 percent Friday and weighed down on the high-tech sector as a whole after several analysts expressed doubts the company could sustain its stellar revenue growth. Wall Street expects Dell to have earned 31 cents a share in the latest quarter.
Shares of another technology leader, Dow component Hewlett Packard (HWP) reversed direction sharply after an early rally and fell 1-7/16 to 75. Hewlett Packard also reports its latest earnings after the closing bell and is expected to have made a profit of 83 cents a share.
Other technology blue chips also took part in the rebound, with Dow member IBM (IBM) rising 4 to 176-3/4, Microsoft (MSFT) gaining 7/16 to 158-3/16, Intel (INTC) climbing 2-11/16 to 129-3/16, and Cisco Systems (CSCO) trading 3-1/16 higher at 102-1/8. Dell competitor Gateway (GTW) rose 2-1/4 to 72-1/2 and rival Compaq (CPQ) was up 1 to 44.
In the day's other newsmakers, shares of retailer Wal-Mart (WMT) jumped 3-7/16 to 87-13/16 after the company reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter results.
Interest-rate-sensitive financial stocks also headed higher, helped by the bond and dollar rallies. Among the Dow members, American Express (AXP) rose 3-5/16 to 103-1/4, Citigroup (C) gained 1-9/16 to 53-7/16 and J.P. Morgan (JPM) was up 3/4 to 109-1/8. BankAmerica (BAC) climbed 1-13/16 to 64-11/16 and Chase Manhattan (CMB) gained 2-15/16 to 77.
Transportation, and especially airline stocks, also recovered after a turbulent week. Shares of AMR (AMR), the parent of American Airlines, gained 5/16 to 55-7/16 as most of the company's pilots returned to work and flights resumed after a long sick-out last week. Shares of Delta Air Lines (DAL) were up 9/16 to 53-1/8. Delta announced plans to buy the remainder of the parent of Atlantic Southeast Airlines for about $700 million. UAL (UAL), the parent of United Airlines, rose 1/4 to 60-1/4. The Dow transports index climbed 20.89 points to 3,117.78. 
-- by staff writer Malina Poshtova Zang
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
