Stocks rally on housing report, earnings
Wall Street was poised to lose half of the previous day's gains, with both the Dow futures and the broader S&P 500 futures down 0.3 percent early on Wednesday, July 18. (July 17, 2012) Credit: AP
A new sign of recovery in the housing market and strong corporate earnings sent stocks higher for a second consecutive day.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 103.16 points to 12,908.70 Wednesday, a strong showing for what has so far been a mediocre July. The index has risen only four times in the last 12 trading days.
"The market expects bad news, so when it doesn't get it, it rises," said John Manley, chief equity strategist at Wells Fargo Advantage Funds. "Earnings haven't been disastrous for the quarter."
A big gain by Intel after it posted a strong earnings report drove up technology stocks, especially other chip makers. Those companies, plus industrials, were responsible for much of the market's gains. The Nasdaq composite climbed 1.12 percent to 2,942.60.
The government reported that builders broke ground last month on the most new homes and apartments in nearly four years. The 6.9 percent jump brought the number of housing starts to the highest since October 2008. The news came a day after a gauge of confidence among U.S. homebuilders jumped to the highest level in five years.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 0.67 percent to 1,372.78.
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