DOW BACK IN RECORD BOOKS.Byline: Jonathan Fuerbringer The New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Times The stock market rallied sharply Tuesday as several companies reported good or better-than-expected earnings for the second quarter, easing concerns about the drag from Asia's economic turmoil. The surge was enough to push the Dow Jones industrial average Dow Jones Industrial Average The best known U.S. index of stocks. A price-weighted average of 30 actively traded blue-chip stocks, primarily industrials including stocks that trade on the New York Stock Exchange. to a new high, making it the last of the big three indexes to climb back into record territory. Whether the rally will hold will depend a lot on how the the rest of the second-quarter earnings season plays out. Only a small proportion of the 500 companies in the Standard & Poor's index have reported so far and analysts are still predicting a lackluster quarter. But it appeared Tuesday that the rush of money into the stock market from Americans and foreigners Foreigners alienage the condition of being an alien. androlepsy Law. the seizure of foreign subjects to enforce a claim for justice or other right against their nation. gypsyologist, gipsyologist Rare. is so strong that it may be enough to overcome less-than-fabulous earnings growth. ``Foreigners are buying U.S. securities aggressively, stock buybacks Stock buyback A corporation's purchase of its own outstanding stock, usually in order to raise the company's earnings per share. stock buyback See buyback. are big and mutual-fund flows are strong,'' said Byron Wien, U.S. investment strategist strat·e·gist n. One who is skilled in strategy. Noun 1. strategist - an expert in strategy (especially in warfare) strategian market strategist - someone skilled in planning marketing campaigns at Morgan Stanley  To comply with Wikipedia's , the introduction of this article needs a complete rewrite. Dean Witter Dean Witter may refer to:
Wien marveled at the economy's ability to grow without a resurgence in inflation and the refusal of investors to worry about how far this market can go. ``It is sort of like having drink after drink and not getting drunk and waking up the next morning without a hangover and thinking that you can party all the time.'' The return to record highs, say some analysts, is not surprising, because they believe that the underlying fundamentals of the U.S. economy continue to be positive enough to support the stock market, even if earnings growth has slowed well below the double-digit pace that sent stocks higher during the last several years. These positive fundamentals were reinforced Tuesday with the report that the Consumer Price Index for June rose just 0.1 percent, leaving inflation up just 1.4 percent on an annual rate this year. June retail sales rose 0.1 percent after a revised 1.2 percent gain in May. While bond prices fell and interest rates rose Tuesday, low inflation and a slowing in economic growth - signs of which are beginning to pop up - mean that interest rates could remain low, which also helps the stock market by making equities look more attractive. ``Lower interest rates are more important than the difference between 3 percent and 6 percent earnings growth,'' said Richard Pucci, the director of research at I/B/E/S International, a firm that follows earnings estimates. ``With inflation and long-term interest rates low and economic activity healthy, I believe that investors are and will remain unfazed un·fazed adj. Not fazed or disturbed. by the slowdown in earnings growth,'' he said. |
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