Dow up 27
in slow trading

NEW YORK -- Stocks posted meager gains today in lifeless holiday trading as the first full week of third-quarter profit reports began on an upbeat note.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 27.01 at 8,072.22, after a slow and steady retreat from an opening 70-point spurt.

Advancers outnumbered decliners by an 8-to-7 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,531 up, 1,330 down and 525 unchanged. NYSE volume totaled just 351.20 million shares vs. 499.70 million Friday.

The Standard & Poor's 500-stock list rose 1.12 to 968.10, and the NYSE composite index rose 0.55 to 507.40. The Nasdaq composite index rose 3.08 at 1,742.11 after retreating from an early foray into record territory.

The Russell 2000 rose 0.18 to 465.21, but the American Stock Exchange composite index, which is dominated by smaller companies, fell 0.80 to 716.57.

Broader stock measures were mostly higher, with the Russell 2000 index of smaller companies scraping together a tiny gain in the final minutes to close at a record high for the third straight session.

J.P. Morgan and Travelers Group led the Dow throughout the day after the two financial conglomerates reported healthy third-quarter results.

As expected, trading was very light with the bond market closed for Columbus Day and no major economic data released.

Overseas today, Tokyo's Nikkei stock average fell 1.0 percent, Frankfurt's DAX index rose 1.0 percent and London's FT-SE 100 rose 1.4 percent.