INVESTORS regained some enthusiasm for stocks yesterday, sending prices sharply higher after reports showed a slight improvement in the housing market and a big jump in industrial production.
Investors were also encouraged by earnings from Home Depot Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. that were better than expected. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 103 points. All the major stock indexes were up more than 1 percent. Interest rates rose as investors moved out of the bond market and back into stocks.
It's too early to say whether stocks have recovered from a recent slump that sent the Dow falling almost 400 points over four days or whether yesterday's advance was an upward blip. Many traders are on vacation, or avoiding any stock moves because of the uncertainty of the economy. That means low trading volume and price moves that can easily be exaggerated. The Dow rose almost 180 points before falling back to its closing level.
But yesterday's reports provided a slice of optimism and some reassurance that the economy continues to expand, although at a slower pace than early this year.
"The data and earnings should ease people's concerns about a double-dip" recession, said Peter Bible, a partner at EisnerAmper. "We're anemic; we're slow; we're crawling, but we're not going backward."
The Commerce Department said construction of new homes and apartments rose 1.7 percent in July, but applications for building permits fell by a higher than expected 3.1 percent. Building permit applications are considered a good gauge of future activity.
Home sales have struggled to regain momentum after a home buyer tax credit expired at the end of April. So signs of stabilization in the market are considered somewhat positive after the sharp declines that followed after the expiration of the tax credit.
And industrial production jumped 1 percent in July, double the 0.5 percent growth forecast by economists. Rising output at the nation's factories, mines and utilities comes after multiple manufacturing reports had shown a pronounced slowdown over the past couple of months.
"That is fairly robust," Jeff Bagley, vice president and portfolio manager at Haverford Investments, said of the industrial production report. It's "another point of relief for investors."
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 103.84, or 1 percent, to 10,405.85. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 13.16, or 1.2 percent, to 1,092.54, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 27.57, or 1.3 percent, to 2,209.44.
About four stocks rose for one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange where volume came to a light 980 million shares.
Investors also had some good news from the latest inflation reading. Prices at the wholesale level rose 0.2 percent last month, the Labor Department said, easing worries about deflation, a drop in prices that is a symptom of a sick economy.
This was the first increase in producer prices since March and matched expectations of economists polled by Thomson Reuters. Excluding volatile food and energy costs, the index rose 0.3 percent in July, more than the 0.1 percent growth predicted by economists.
Home Depot followed fellow home-improvement retailer Lowe's in beating earnings expectations. Home Depot, as Lowe's did on Monday, modestly cut its revenue forecast as shoppers remain cautious about spending amid high unemployment. The company also raised its earnings forecast because of share repurchases.
Aside from better-than-expected earnings, Wal-Mart raised its earnings outlook because of continued cost-cutting measures and strong global growth in China, Brazil and Mexico.
Wal-Mart rose 61 cents, or 1.2 percent, to US$51.02. Home Depot rose 93 cents, or 3.4 percent, to US$28.31.
Meanwhile, Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. rejected an unsolicited takeover bid from BHP Billiton Ltd. worth about US$38.49 billion, or US$130 per share. Potash, a fertilizer producer, said the bid undervalued the company.