Blue-chip stocks continued their four-month advance Wednesday, briefly pushing the Dow Jones industrial average above the 12,000 milestone.
An attractive combination of strong earnings reports and favorable economic data kept the rally going. Late Wednesday, upbeat quarterly reports by Apple Computer, Gilead Sciences and eBay improved chances for a positive market opening Thursday. On the downside, home mortgage lender WashingtonMutual fell in late trading, after a weak quarterly report.
The consumer price inflation report, posted Wednesday, was regarded as benign. A surprise increase in housing starts in September bolstered speculation that the housing slump was ending. Oil prices fell ahead of an OPEC meeting to discuss production cuts.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 42.66, to 11,992.68. International Business Machines and Johnson & Johnson, which reported robust quarterly results Tuesday, led the Dow gain. Caterpillar and JPMorgan Chase were the biggest Dow losers.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index added 1.91, to 1365.96. Intel, which reported better-than-expected quarterly results late Tuesday, was among the contributors to the S&P 500 gain. Motorola and JPMorgan Chase, whose numbers disappointed, fell.
The Nasdaq composite index slipped 7.80, to 2337.15, after the quarterly results from technology companies presented a mixed bag. The Russell 2000 index of small-company stocks eased 1.50, to 763.41.
Among the companies expected to post quarterly numbers Thursday is Oak Brook-based McDonald’s. Analysts on average expect earnings per share of 68 cents, up from 58 cents in the year-ago quarter, according to Reuters Estimates.
Sales are expected to have reached $5.78 billion in the third quarter, up from $5.33 billion a year earlier.
New York Stock Exchange trading volume totaled 1.65 billion shares. Winners outnumbered losers by a 9-7 ratio. Nasdaq trading volume was 2.10 billion, as losers held a slight lead over winners.
Treasury securities ended little changed after the consumer price index and housing starts data sent confusing signals about inflation.
Crude oil for November delivery dropped $1.28 a barrel, to $57.65.
