NEW YORK -- The Dow Jones industrials scored their second straight triple-digit gain today, as investors grew more optimistic that Wall Street might be recovering after two weeks of heavy losses. Dow up 183 as rally
By Lisi de Bourbon
gains momentum
Associated PressAlthough the market extended a rally that began Friday, analysts warned there are no guarantees that the gains would be sustained in the long term.
"I don't see any conviction behind it," said Tony Cecin, senior managing director and head of equity trading at U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray Inc. "We need to see three, four, five days of plus-Dow movement on increasing volume every day before people begin to feel this is something people can maybe pin their hats to."
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 182.75 to close at 9,687.53, adding to Friday's 115.30-point gain. It was the Dow's biggest advance in four weeks; on Feb. 26, it rose 200.63.
The broader market was mixed. The Nasdaq composite index, moderately higher until early afternoon, was off 10.19 at 1,918.49. Wall Street's broadest measure, the Standard & Poor's 500, rose 12.86 to 1,152.69.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by nearly 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, with 2,000 up, 1,076 down and 202 unchanged. Volume was 1.11 billion shares, compared with 1.36 billion at the same point Friday. The NYSE composite index rose 9.14 to 587.01, the American Stock Exchange composite index gained 6.10 to 867.47 and the Russell 2000 rose 4.11 to 447.38. The Treasury's 10-year note fell 1232 to 101232; its yield rose 5 basis points to 4.86 percent. The 30-year bond fell 2532 to 10018; its yield rose 5 basis points to 5.37 percent.
While the general atmosphere was improving, the market still showed its vulnerability.
Cisco Systems dropped 81 cents to $17.87. Earlier, the stock had hit a 52-week low of $17.63 after two analysts lowered their estimates for the Internet networking company's third-quarter and fiscal 2001 results. The decline also followed a published report in which Chief Executive John Chambers predicted the economic downturn would continue for at least three quarters.
But analysts saw some strength despite Cisco's slide. Arthur Hogan, chief market analyst at Jeffries & Co. said it was a "very telling statement" that the Nasdaq, while lower for the most part, held its own although one of its leading stocks was struggling.
Sectors that were hard-hit the past two weeks recovered today, including health care. Merck rose $2.50 to $71.48 and Pfizer was up $1.21 at $38.74. Financial stocks also were ahead, with Bear Stearns up 96 cents at $47.35 and Cigna gaining $2.02 to $105.03.
Utility stocks benefited from news that California's top power regulator proposed a 40 percent increase in electricity rates. Pacific Gas & Electric rose $3.10 to $13.75 and Edison International shot up $3.35 to $14.55.
The market also drew some strength from expectations for lower interest rates. Alan Ackerman, executive vice president of Fahnestock & Co., suggested investors are anticipating that the Conference Board's report on consumer confidence, due out tomorrow, will raise the prospect of a further slowdown in consumer spending and encourage the Federal Reserve to lower rates before it meets again in mid-May.
Overseas, Tokyo stocks soared today to their highest level in two months. The benchmark 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average climbed 647.77 points, or 4.90 percent, to close at 13,862.31. It was the index's best finish since closing at 13,893.58 on Jan. 24.