Halliburton Shares Up 11% on Temporary Stay

Halliburton Co. shares rose 11% after a federal judge issued a temporary stay on more than 200,000 pending asbestos claims against its Dresser Industries unit.

Shares of the Dallas-based oil field services and construction firm closed up $1.61 at $16.27. Halliburton was the seventh-most-actively traded issue on the New York Stock Exchange.

Halliburton’s announcement helped lift shares of chemical firm W.R. Grace & Co. 4.8%, to $2.42, and stock of construction materials maker USG Corp. 4.3%, to $8.50, both on the NYSE.

The stay on the Dresser lawsuits will remain in place until a hearing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Pennsylvania. The hearing is expected in the next two weeks.

RHI, the largest maker of fireproofing materials, said that its U.S. units have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection amid mounting asbestos-related claims.