Dow Retakes 8000
Small Friday Gains Cap Strong Week for Stocks
By Peter A. McKay
Stocks capped a week of strong gains with a small advance Friday despite a dismal employment report.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 39.51 points, or 0.5%, to 8017.59. Its financial and technology components were strong. The measure has now risen for four straight weeks.
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The S&P 500 rose 8.12 points, or 1%, to 842.50. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 19.24 points, or 1.2%, to 1621.87 amid a surge in shares of Research In Motion, which jumped 21% after a strong earnings report.
Traders noted much of the tech sector’s recent gains have flowed from the retail investors returning to stocks amid the market’s recent strength.
“Investors are still heavily in cash and the challenge they are facing is how to scale back into growth-oriented investments. For that reason, technology leadership is not surprising given many are flush with cash and little debt,” said David Kreinces, a portfolio manager with ETF Portfolio Management.
All three major market averages are up more than 20% from their bear-market lows hit in early March. In a sign that investors are less averse to risk, treasury prices dropped, pushing the yield on the 10-year note back toward 3%. Gold slipped under $900 an ounce. The Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index, a popular gauge of investor anxiety, sank 5.6% to fall under the 40 mark. The dollar climbed above 100 yen.
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