Tame Jobs Report Lifts U.S. Stocks : Wall St.: Bonds also rally as fears of an interest rate hike are soothed, but it may be ‘too early to break open the champagne.’
The Nasdaq composite index scored its biggest point gain in history Friday as U.S. stocks rallied along with bonds on a tame employment report that helped ease fears of an imminent interest rate hike.
The technology-dominated Nasdaq leaped 108.87 points, or 4%, to 2,843.11; the Dow Jones industrial average rocketed 235.24 points, or 2.2%, to 11,078.45; and the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index climbed 38.13 points, or 2.9%, to 1,357.24.
Government bonds staged their biggest rally in almost a year, with the benchmark 30-year Treasury yield plummeting to 6.02% from 6.13% the day before.
Nasdaq’s gain eclipsed the previous point record of 103.16 on June 16. Friday’s advance put the index within 21 points of the July 16 record close of 2,864.48.
First Albany strategist Hugh Johnson said the employment report shows that “at least for one month, there are some signs that the economy slowed. It lessened the chance of another interest rate hike at the Fed’s Oct. 5 meeting.”
But he warned: “It’s too early to break open the champagne bottle. It’s enticing to attach too much importance to one report.”
Yahoo vaulted $13.44 to $155, propelling Nasdaq, a day after the Nielsen/NetRatings report ranked its sites as the most visited Web property for the latest week.
Meanwhile, the Dow notched its second-biggest point gain this year, after soaring 268.68 points March 5. But it wasn’t enough to completely repair the damage done by losses the industrials suffered in three of the last five trading days. For the week, the Dow dipped 0.1%.
But Nasdaq jumped 3.1% for the week and the S&P; 500 rose 0.7%.
J.P. Morgan paced Dow point gainers in Friday’s trading, rising $7.88 to $133.81.
Investment banking, software, computer and semiconductor stocks led the S&P; to its biggest point climb this year.
American Express soared $6.13 to $142, while Hewlett-Packard jumped $4.69 to $109.63, after Thursday’s launch of new digital photography products.
The Dow’s few weak spots included Coca-Cola, down $2.13 to $57.38 on the company’s profit warning, and Sears, off $1.06 to $32.44 a day after issuing an earnings warning of its own. Friday’s slide brought the retailer’s two-day loss to 14%.
Advancers beat decliners by more than 3 to 1 in light, pre-holiday trading. Markets are closed Monday for Labor Day.
In currency trading, the dollar also got a major boost from the jobs report, rising against the yen and euro. If confidence mounts that the Federal Reserve is through raising rates this year, “that’s going to be a clear sign that people can get back into dollars,” said John Cholakis, a trader at Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank.
The dollar zoomed to 110.05 yen, from 109.11 on Thursday. The European currency fetched $1.061, down from $1.069.
In commodity trading, crude oil prices leaped back up to the $22-a-barrel mark on the New York Mercantile Exchange, recovering from two days of losses.
Among the stock market’s other highlights:
* Newell Rubbermaid skidded $8.44 to $32.88 after the maker of household products lowered its third-quarter and 1999 earnings estimates, citing sluggish retail demand.
* MDSI Mobile Data Solutions surged $4.19 to $17.19, after Dain Rauscher Wessels started coverage of the Canadian company’s stock with a “strong buy” rating.
* National Discount Brokers Group slumped $5.50 to $25.75. After Thursday’s close, the online broker warned its quarterly earnings will fall short of expectations.
* AutoCyte soared $2.16 to $6.88 as Aetna, the nation’s largest health insurer, agreed to cover a new type of Pap smear test, which federal officials in 1996 said was more effective in detecting early signs of cervical cancer. One of the tests is Prep, made by AutoCyte.
Overseas, Japan’s Nikkei index was flat, but Wall Street pulled most European indexes sharply higher. Germany’s DAX gained 2.8%, and France’s CAC-40 rose 2.7%.
Market Roundup, C4
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Nasdaq’s Surge
The tech-oriented Nasdaq composite index surged 108.87 points Friday - its biggest one-day point gain ever - and is now near its July 16 peak. Daily closes and latest:
July 16: 2,864.48
Friday: 2,843.11
Source: Bridge Information Systems
