Roller Coaster Day Up, down, then up

The close: Up, down, then up

RTGAM






After a see-saw session, major North American stock market indexes ended Thursday near their highs for the day after investors overcame their early reservations toward two dismal economics reports and instead focused on fairly upbeat earnings reports.


The Dow Jones industrial average closed at 7957.06, up 70.49 points, or 0.9 per cent - after scooting between positive and negative territory an amazing 15 times. The broader S&P 500 made a similar meandering journey, closing at 851.92, up 8.37 points, or 1 per cent.


Bank of America Corp. rose 6.8 per cent and JPMorgan Chase & Co. rose 4.1 per cent. However, General Motors Corp. fell 4.1 per cent over ongoing concerns about its survival and Home Depot Inc. fell 1.6 per cent.


The market had shown early signs of rising after Apple Inc. and eBay Inc. reported better than expected quarterly earnings on Wednesday evening, only to surrender those gains after two economic reports challenged the notion that the economy is bottoming out.


First, initial jobless claims rose 27,000 for the week ended April 18, to 640,000 - in line with economists' expectations but breaking a two-week winning streak in which claims were lower than expected.
As well, sales of existing homes fell 3 per cent in March after a slight increase in February had inspired hopes among investors that lower mortgage rates would bring buyers back to the market.


After the market closed, three heavyweights reported their quarterly results. Amazon.com Inc. reported a 24 per cent rise in its earnings, sending the shares up 1.2 per cent in after market trading. Microsoft Corp. reported a 32 per cent drop in its earnings, but the shares were up 3.3 per cent in after market trading. As well, American Express Co. reported a 56 per cent drop in its earnings. The shares rose 3.7 per cent in after market trading.


In Canada, the S&P/TSX composite index closed at 9412.97, up 133.82 points, or 1.4 per cent.


Energy stocks were particularly active after a number of blue-chip energy companies in North America reported first quarter results that were well-received. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. rose 3.5 per cent and Suncor Energy Inc. rose 3.5 per cent.


Financials were also strong, with Bank of Nova Scotia up 2.5 per cent and Toronto-Dominion Bank up 2.1 per cent.

Copyright 2001 The Globe and Mail

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After the Bell