Dow, Nasdaq extend gains on good earnings reports
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E-mail Xinhua, January 24, 2013
U.S. stocks traded mixed Wednesday, with Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite Index continuing to rise, bolstered by upbeat earnings.
The main stock indices opened higher, spurred by the better- than-expected earnings from Google and IBM released after the closing bell on Tuesday's session.
Google shares jumped over 6 percent, one day after the tech giant reported that its revenue in its core Internet business surged 22 percent to 12.91 billion U.S. dollars in the fourth quarter.
Shares of IBM were nearly 5 percent higher following a bottom line beat. In addition, the computer-services provider guided full- year 2013 earnings ahead of analyst expectations.
McDonald's Corp. reported fourth-quarter revenue above expectations before the opening bell, due to strong December sales. But fast-food company sees January same-restaurant sales declining. The Dow component managed to trade into negative territory after the mixed results.
Another Dow component, United Technologies Corp., added slightly after the leading provider of high-technology products reported the fourth quarter earnings in 2012 of 1.04 dollars per share compared with 1.42 dollars in the year-ago quarter, topping analysts'estimates.
On the economic front, U.S. house prices rose 0.6 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from October to November, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency's monthly House Price Index ( HPI) released on Wednesday, pointing to a sustained home price appreciation.
Global economic growth will strengthen gradually in 2013, with 3.5 percent up from 3.2 percent in 2012, as the constraints on economic activity start to ease this year, said the International Monetary Fund in an update to its World Economic Outlook. Meanwhile, the recovery is slow, and the report stressed that policies must address downside risks to bolster growth.
In midday trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 56. 24 points, or 0.41 percent, to 13,768.45. The broader S&P 500 Index lost 0.44 points, or less than 1 percent, to 1,492.12. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index gained 9.07 points, or 0.29 percent, to 3,152.25.
U.S. stocks rebounded to close higher in the previous session, as the White House would welcome a temporary extension to the debt ceiling, with the Dow and Standard & Poor's 500 Index hitting more than five-year highs. Endi
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