Dow up 97.9 to
top 9,100

NEW YORK -- The Dow Jones industrial average shot back into record territory today as another favorable reading on inflation and some respectable profit reports by major companies fueled a rally by blue-chip stocks.

The Dow rose about 97.90 points to close at 9,110.20, easily beating the April 6 record close of 9,033.23, the blue-chip barometer's first close above 9,000.

So far this year, the Dow has gained 15.2 percent -- more than double what many analysts had predicted for all of 1998.

Advancers beat decliners today by a 7-to-4 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,893 up, 1,105 down and 520 unchanged. NYSE volume was 611.42 million shares vs. 563.91 million yesterday.

The Standard & Poor's 500-stock list rose 6.06 to 1,115.75, and the NYSE composite index gained 3.54 to 581.31.

The Nasdaq composite index rose 18.08 to 1,843.03, the American Stock Exchange composite index gained 1.54 to 739.86, and the Russell 2000 index climbed 5.29 to end at 484.85.

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 5.90 percent from 5.92 percent late yesterday. Prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Blue-chip shares started the day strong after Dow components Eastman Kodak Co., Johnson & Johnson, and J.P. Morgan & Co. reported first-quarter results that met or exceeded Wall Street forecasts.

Overseas, Tokyo's Nikkei stock average fell 40 points, or 0.2 percent, to close at 16,277.32.