NASDAQ, DOW UP ON TECH; STOCKS JUMP DESPITE MIXED ECONOMIC NEWS.

Byline: Eileen Glanton Associated Press 

Technology stocks roared higher Thursday, sending the Nasdaq composite index back into record territory and pushing the Dow Jones industrials firmly above 11,000.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 40.67 points to close at 11,039.06. The advance left the Dow more than 1,000 points above its mid-October low of 10,019.71 and poised to attack the all-time high of 11,326.04 set Aug. 25.

Broader stock indicators were also higher. The Nasdaq composite shot up 99.07 to 3,452.78, topping its November 26 record of 3,447.81. The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 11.32 to 1,409.04.

Hewlett-Packard buoyed the Dow, rising $3.375 to $99.875 as of 5:45 p.m. EST. The company held an analysts' meeting this week to detail plans to cut costs and expand sales of its computer servers, and several investment firms expressed optimism about the computer maker's prospects under Carly Fiorina, its new chief executive officer.

The Nasdaq rose on gains from a wide range of technology stocks. Oracle rose $5.25 to $75.9375, Sun Microsystems rose $5.8125 to $136, and eBay gained $7.0625 to $167.0625.

The technology-dominated index slumped early this week as investors locked in profits from a stellar month of November, when the Nasdaq set 15 new closing highs. But with most technology companies posting strong sales and rapid growth, investors are finding few reasons to stay away from the sector.

``Despite the quickie reversal earlier this week, the techs didn't really go away,'' said Joseph V. Battipaglia, chief investment strategist at Gruntal & Co. ``Portfolio managers are still going to want to score off these companies as we head toward the end of the year.''

Thursday's sharp advance perplexed some analysts, as stocks rose despite decidedly mixed news about the state of the U.S. economy. The Commerce Department said new-home sales hit a record level in October, rising 16.3 percent from September despite rising mortgage rates. The report hurt bonds and sent the yield on the 30-year Treasury rising to 6.31 percent from 6.29 percent late Wednesday.

The strong housing report also diluted the impact of a survey that showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose last week.

The strength of the job market has kept inflation jitters alive on Wall Street, which is concerned that companies competing for workers will be forced to raise prices to offer attractive salaries. The rise in jobless claims was viewed as a sign the job market is not getting tighter.

Analysts said investors may have skimmed over Thursday's reports in light of today's more crucial unemployment report, which will reflect hiring and wages for the month of October. That report is expected to offer some indication of whether the economy is growing fast enough to convince the Federal Reserve to continue raising interest rates.

The Fed has already raised short-term interest rates three times this year in an effort to keep inflation from escalating. Most economists expect the Fed to leave rates unchanged at its December meeting, but recent signs of economic strength have convinced many that the Fed could raise rates as early as February.

``Bonds are likely to fret about jobs data, though much bad news appears to be already factored in,'' said Scott J. Brown, chief economist at Raymond James & Associates in St. Petersburg, Fla.