NEW YORK - The Dow Jones industrial average rose just shy of the 8,000 mark today amid enthusiasm over a new IBM technology for computer chips and another drop in interest rates in the bond market. Dow up 79.56
The Dow made four fleeting forays above 8,000 before settling at 7,996.83, up 79.56 points for the day. The Dow, which has been down as much as 8 percent from Aug. 6's record close of 8,259.31, hasn't finished a day above 8,000 since Aug. 20.
Advancers beat decliners by a 13-to-9 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,712 up, 1,195 down and 506 unchanged. NYSE volume was 490.26 million shares vs. 630.54 million Friday.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index bobbed into record territory for the first time since early August, but also faltered in the afternoon.
The S&P 500 list rose 4.92 to 955.43, and the NYSE composite index gained 2.60 to 499.16, beating Aug. 6's record close of 497.00. The Russell 2000 rose 1.81 to 448.98; the Nasdaq composite index gained 9.10 to 1,689.46 for its third straight record close; and the American Stock Exchange composite index rose 3.00 to 689.94 to set its seventh consecutive closing high.
Bonds, which have been bolstered by reports showing that inflation has remained tame, fueled the stock market for the seventh consecutive session. A jump in the dollar's currency exchange value, which can spur foreign demand for U.S. investments, also helped lift the bond market.
The price of the Treasury's main 30-year bond was up 13/32 point, or $4.06 per $1,000 in face value, by late afternoon, while its yield fell to 6.35 percent from 6.37 percent late Friday.