Dow nears 12,000
Wall Street extended its record-setting advance today, sending the Dow Jones industrial average within a whisper of 12,000 as investors grew more optimistic that corporate profits would remain robust amid a slowing economy.
The blue chip index came within 3 points of reaching the milestone for the first time before falling back minutes before the close; it still managed a record high close, its seventh in two weeks. A deluge of earnings reports, including 12 from Dow component companies slated this week, could make or break the Dow’s three-week run at record levels.
The Dow rose 20.09, or 0.17%, to 11,980.60. In the final hour of trading, the Dow reached a record trading high of 11,997.25.
Broader stock indicators also advanced. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 3.44, or 0.25%, to 1,369.06, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 6.55, or 0.28%, to close at 2,363.84.
Bonds rose, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note dipping to 4.79% from 4.80% on Friday. The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices rose.
The advance also came despite a sharp rise in energy prices, with natural gas having its biggest rise since July. Light, sweet crude closed up 1.39 at 59.56 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
There was little reaction after St Louis Federal Reserve President William Poole said in a speech that “draconian” action would not be needed to control the US economy if inflation ebbed.
Wall Street was also relieved that Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke stayed away from the economy in a speech today, and instead spoke on regulatory burdens in efforts to battle terrorist financing.
