Dow rebounds
to gain 82 points

NEW YORK -- Stocks struggled today despite some encouraging economic data, but turned higher in the afternoon, boosting some measures to record highs.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 81.99 points to 7,742.97, cutting the week's loss to 79.44 points. The blue-chip index had gained about 51 points in the first minutes of trading, but then retreated to a 53-point deficit before bouncing back.

Advancers beat decliners by more than a 5-to-2 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 2,094 up, 791 down and 496 unchanged. NYSE volume was 543.33 million shares vs. 574.57 million yesterday.

Broad-market indicators also pushed higher in the afternoon. The Standard & Poor's 500 list rose 11.32 to 923.91, the NYSE composite index climbed 6.24 to 483.30, and the Nasdaq index rose 9.47 to 1,649.33. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies closed at a record high for the 10th time in 13 sessions, rising 4.16 to 440.09. Also returning to record territory was the American Stock Exchange composite index, which rose 5.47 to 672.31.

Stocks drew an early boost from the bond market, where interest rates fell sharply after the release of two reports showing a modest increase in wholesale prices and a smaller-than-expected increase in retail sales.

The price of the Treasury's main 30-year bond was up 1 9/32 points, or $12.81 per $1,000 in face value, by late afternoon, while its yield fell to 6.59 percent from 6.69 percent late yesterday. Prices and yields move in opposite directions.