Wall Street passed another milestone in its budding recovery Thursday as the Dow Jones industrials crossed 9,000 for the first time in six weeks.
Stocks had their second advance, as another day without bad news strengthened investors confidence.
"It is time for a rebound," said Susan L. Malley, chief investment officer for Malley Associates Capital Management Inc. in New York. "It is encouraging that this is happening in August -- at a time when there are a lot of people out of town and not putting in their trades.
"I do think that this firmness, even though it is on light volume, is a sign that the bottom is in," Malley said.
The Dow closed up 96.41, or 1.1 percent, at 9,053.64. Building on Wednesdays 85-point gain, the Dow has not closed above 9,000 since July 9, when it stood at 9,096.09.
The blue-chip indicator has recovered 1,351.30 points since its July 23 low of 7,702.34.
The broader market also was higher.
The Nasdaq composite index rose 13.69, or 1 percent, to 1,422.94, having closed above 1,400 on Wednesday for the first time since July 8. The Standard & Poors 500 index advanced 13.34, or 1.4 percent, to 962.70.
Investors are feeling more confident about stocks, as seen last week when all the indexes scored their second week of gains, last seen in the two-week period ending March 8.
Wall Street also owes its gains to a welcome break from major earnings shortfalls, disappointing economic reports and bookkeeping scandals.
"The lack of bad news over the past few weeks has been encouraging," said Thomas F. Lydon Jr., president of Global Trends Investments in Newport Beach, Calif. "People are taking a deep breath and looking for opportunities while they are still around."
Still, investors are expected to lock in profits occasionally while awaiting signs that a solid economic recovery is under way and indications that profits are showing significant improvement.
Among Thursdays gainers, Microsoft Corp. rose 95 cents, to $53.23, after Salomon Smith Barney Inc. upgraded the stock to "outperform" from "neutral."
Other technology bellwethers also advanced.
IBM Corp. rose 99 cents, to $81.99, while Hewlett-Packard Co. gained 60 cents, to $15.30.
Wall Streets gains were spread across a broad range of sectors, which analysts attributed to prices having fallen to attractive levels.
Citigroup Inc. climbed 83 cents, to $35.18; Johnson & Johnson Co. rose $1.31, to $49.32, and General Motors Co. advanced $1.31, to $49.32.
Talbots Inc. rose $1.32, to $34.52, after Merrill Lynch & Co. raised its 2002 and 2003 earnings estimates for the retailer.
The advance also came a day after the company beat quarterly profit expectations.
But weaker-than-expected earnings weighed in on Mens Wearhouse Inc. -- which fell $1.07, at $19.35 -- and on Barnes & Noble Inc., which declined 50 cents, to $22.93.
Both companies reported results that fell short of forecasts.
Despite quarterly earnings that were better than expected, Williams-Sonoma Co. fell $1.65, to $25, after also cutting its yearly forecast.
Investors keep close tabs how retailers are faring because consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of the economy.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners 2-to-1 on the New York Stock Exchange. Consolidated volume was light, at 1.75 billion shares, just ahead of Wednesdays 1.69 billion.
The Russell 2000 index, which tracks smaller-company stocks, rose 2.88, or 0.7 percent, to 409.67.
Overseas, Japans Nikkei stock average finished Thursday up 1.8 percent.
In Europe, Frances CAC-40 rose 3.1 percent, Britains FTSE 100 gained 1.6 percent, and Germanys DAX index advanced 1 percent.
On the Net: New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
Stocks had their second advance, as another day without bad news strengthened investors confidence.
"It is time for a rebound," said Susan L. Malley, chief investment officer for Malley Associates Capital Management Inc. in New York. "It is encouraging that this is happening in August -- at a time when there are a lot of people out of town and not putting in their trades.
"I do think that this firmness, even though it is on light volume, is a sign that the bottom is in," Malley said.
The Dow closed up 96.41, or 1.1 percent, at 9,053.64. Building on Wednesdays 85-point gain, the Dow has not closed above 9,000 since July 9, when it stood at 9,096.09.
The blue-chip indicator has recovered 1,351.30 points since its July 23 low of 7,702.34.
The broader market also was higher.
The Nasdaq composite index rose 13.69, or 1 percent, to 1,422.94, having closed above 1,400 on Wednesday for the first time since July 8. The Standard & Poors 500 index advanced 13.34, or 1.4 percent, to 962.70.
Investors are feeling more confident about stocks, as seen last week when all the indexes scored their second week of gains, last seen in the two-week period ending March 8.
Wall Street also owes its gains to a welcome break from major earnings shortfalls, disappointing economic reports and bookkeeping scandals.
"The lack of bad news over the past few weeks has been encouraging," said Thomas F. Lydon Jr., president of Global Trends Investments in Newport Beach, Calif. "People are taking a deep breath and looking for opportunities while they are still around."
Still, investors are expected to lock in profits occasionally while awaiting signs that a solid economic recovery is under way and indications that profits are showing significant improvement.
Among Thursdays gainers, Microsoft Corp. rose 95 cents, to $53.23, after Salomon Smith Barney Inc. upgraded the stock to "outperform" from "neutral."
Other technology bellwethers also advanced.
IBM Corp. rose 99 cents, to $81.99, while Hewlett-Packard Co. gained 60 cents, to $15.30.
Wall Streets gains were spread across a broad range of sectors, which analysts attributed to prices having fallen to attractive levels.
Citigroup Inc. climbed 83 cents, to $35.18; Johnson & Johnson Co. rose $1.31, to $49.32, and General Motors Co. advanced $1.31, to $49.32.
Talbots Inc. rose $1.32, to $34.52, after Merrill Lynch & Co. raised its 2002 and 2003 earnings estimates for the retailer.
The advance also came a day after the company beat quarterly profit expectations.
But weaker-than-expected earnings weighed in on Mens Wearhouse Inc. -- which fell $1.07, at $19.35 -- and on Barnes & Noble Inc., which declined 50 cents, to $22.93.
Both companies reported results that fell short of forecasts.
Despite quarterly earnings that were better than expected, Williams-Sonoma Co. fell $1.65, to $25, after also cutting its yearly forecast.
Investors keep close tabs how retailers are faring because consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of the economy.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners 2-to-1 on the New York Stock Exchange. Consolidated volume was light, at 1.75 billion shares, just ahead of Wednesdays 1.69 billion.
The Russell 2000 index, which tracks smaller-company stocks, rose 2.88, or 0.7 percent, to 409.67.
Overseas, Japans Nikkei stock average finished Thursday up 1.8 percent.
In Europe, Frances CAC-40 rose 3.1 percent, Britains FTSE 100 gained 1.6 percent, and Germanys DAX index advanced 1 percent.
On the Net: New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com