NEW YORK -- Stocks rallied today, setting new highs for the first time in nearly two months as a surprisingly strong economic report eased worries about profits. Dow gains 99
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 98.97 points to close at 8,149.13, just 110 points shy of its record close of 8,159.31 on Aug. 6. The Dow gained 326 points, or more than 4 percent, for the week.
Advancers beat decliners by a 3-to-2 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,731 up, 1,188 down and 521 unchanged. NYSE volume was 556.93 million shares vs. 632.14 million yesterday.
Broad-market indicators also posted big gains today.
The Standard & Poor's 500 rise 10.69 to 983.79, beating its previous best finish of 983.12 on Oct. 7. The NYSE index rose 4.88 to 514.32, slipping past the prior record of 514.21, also set Oct. 7.
The Nasdaq composite index, laden with technology issues believed most vulnerable to the turmoil in Asia, rose 20.48 to 1,633.90, but still sits more than 100 points from record territory. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 3.15 to 438.06, and the small-
company dominated American Stock Exchange composite index rose 4.47 to 670.27.
Investors were initially unnerved by a robust employment report that caused interest rates to jump in the bond market after falling to their lowest level in nearly two years on Wednesday. The yield on the 30-year Treasury, a key determinant of the interest charge on many types of loans, rose as high as 6.16 percent before settling at about 6.08 percent. That compares with late yesterday's 6.04 percent and late Wednesday's 6.01 percent, which was the lowest finish since January 1996.