U.S. stocks end sharply higher; Dow hits 31-month high

[Freddie Stubbs]

Monday January 26, 4:19 pm ET
By Mark Cotton


NEW YORK (CBS.MW) -- U.S. stocks ended higher Monday in a late afternoon rally which saw blue chips close at a 31-month high and the Nasdaq Composite overcome early weakness, with traders saying solid earnings and broadly positive economic data continue to attract fresh money into the markets.
Pharmaceutical stocks were in focus as investors mulled Sanofi-Synthelabo's $60 billion hostile bid for French-German rival Aventis, a positive report in Barron's for Merck and weaker-than-expected fourth quarter earnings from Schering-Plough.

"The new money just keeps coming in, with buy programs late in the day putting money to work," said Tim Heekin, head of stocktrading at Thomas Weisel Partners. "Today's rally is putting new highs on a number of indices and I would say we are going to be going higher as long as the new money keeps coming and there aren't any major blow-ups on earnings or the economic figures."

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI - News) ended up 134.22 points, or 1.3 percent at 10,702.51, its best level since 21st June 2001.

more: http://biz.yahoo.com/cbsm-top/040126/0a6788d6033f8be996ba548e8ef09057_1.html

[Buffler]

1. I've been doing very well

that past 18 months to 2 years in the market. I hope it continues!

[NeoConsSuck]

11. It will continue..

until election day. Probably guaranteeing a NeoCon victory. So learn to play their game. Join the pigs at the feeding trough every morning at 9:30 EST, and with your winnings, donate some to a worthy cause.

My favorites:

http://www.greenpeace.org/international_en/

http://www.democraticunderground.com/donate.html

http://globalfreepress.com/

http://www.pcwf.org/

http://www.wsws.org

No different than Fidelity and Charles Schwab making millions during the Clinton administration stock market and then turning around and donating to the Repugs.

[leftyandproud]

14. good advice! *NT*

[Newsjock]

2. The rich are doing very well

... while the rest of us continue to suffer. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is no longer an indicator of the health of America -- rather, it shows the degree to which the new overclass is raping and pillaging this once-proud nation.

So, yes, with outsourcing rampant and labor rights trampled to the ground, it's no wonder that companies are posting record earnings -- and doing so with fewer and fewer employees.

If these companies had any sense of duty to their nation, they would hire back workers and not make half the workers do three times the work for half the salary.

To those of you who are fortunate or privileged enough to be invested in the stock market, congratulations. To the rest of us, woe is us.

Oh, and this little snippet: The new money just keeps coming in... -- just where is the money coming from? The Plunge Protection Team? Or is it just those "lost" billions we've looted from Iraq?

[leftyandproud]

4. those "fortunate and privileged" enough to be invested...

include 70% of the American public..

this is benefiting everyone, and we should acknowledge it and have our arguments ready against these economic policies

[Freddie Stubbs]

7. You are correct

Anyone who has a pension plan or 401K, is a member of a credit union, pays taxes will see a benefit form increases in the stock market.

[NoMoreRedInk]

18. I'm not rich and it benefits me.....

I'm rooting hard for the Dow and the NASDAQ.

[mbperrin]

3. NEW money????

Then how come the DJIA was nearly 12,000 in January 2000? More than a thousand points off that counts as new money? Bosh! Glad I got out of the market in December 99 and I ain't going back.

Edit to add link:http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=^DJI&t=5y

[moondust]

12. I got out as soon as Bush was selected.

Not going back at least until he is gone, maybe never. I think recent market gains are largely attributable to a relatively small group of primarily Bushco-backing pigs who have enough money and contacts to manipulate the markets where they want them to go until some little guys start to pile on. Not interested in the ill-gotten gains that come as a result of putting my neighbors (and eventually me) out of work in favor of exploiting slave labor in underdeveloped countries. It stinks.

[Yavin4]

5. The Dow is Up Because of Low Interest Rates

Rates have not been this low since WWII. It's all borrowed money folks. All borrowed money.

[tritsofme]

6. Irrational Exuberance Part II

nt

[pfitz59]

8. Yep, my thoughts exactly!

The balloon is getting bigger and bigger while Greenspan keeps pumping hot air! This "Hindenberg" is headed for Jersey with no detour in sight!

[osaMABUSh]

9. Who is everyone kidding - how has your 401K done last 3 years?

Sure the numbers are great for one year but we got a lot of ground to make up. Most of us are not players but just common folk with a little 401K or IRA money that sits in mutual funds. We can't afford to buy any more than our % contributions at work.

[Freddie Stubbs]

19. My 401k has done fine over the LONG RUN

If you are looking to make a quick buck in a few years the stock market isn't for you. But if you are looking to make money on the long term, it is a good investment.



It goes up. It goes down. But over time the trend is up.

[smirkymonkey]

10. A house of cards built on a

major fault line is how I percieve it. It's not built on solid fundamentals, just a lot of smoke and mirrors and insider manipulation.

Personally, if I had any money invested right now (pretty much wiped out by unemployed and in debt) I would be taking profits right about now and heading for the hills.

[NickB79]

13. Two words

Jobless Recovery.

I don't give a flying f**k about the stock market if I don't see any new job opportunities.

[R Hickey]

15. Two words -- Devaluation and inflation.

When a country makes its currency worth 40 percent less, like Bush just did, the corporate stocks in that currency will rise by a corrospondingly opposite amount.

When Clinton left office, gold was at $285/oz and the Euro cost 85 cents. Now gold is around $400 and Euros cost $1.20. Now healthcare, tuition, gas, gold, Euros, Pounds, Yen, and stocks, are all up by the approximate amount that the dollar has declined.

So, much of the stock market boomlet is explainable by the international adjustments made for the devaluation of our US dollar. Earning gains can be explained the same way.

When Bush makes the dollar worth a nickel, which he may do in his next term, all your five-dollar stocks will rise, in valuation, to one-hundred dollars each. By that time, gasoline will cost twenty-five dollars a gallon, and a month in a hospital will cost you a cool million.

The only thing that is not inflating is Wal-Mart products, which are supplied by China, who's currency is tied to, and fluctuates with the US dollar.

[Pale Blue Dot]

16. I heard on NPR's "Marketplace" today

That there is a rumor that Greenspan will come out strongly against the deficit sometime in February. I doubt the market will react kindly to those words.

[0007]

17. Is this "Hot! crap game" the only game in town?

Like pigs at a table playing with funny money.

[denverbill]

20. Market is ALMOST back to where it was when Bush started.

Almost.

And it only took 3 1/2 years to get back to our starting point.

The market quadrupled during Clinton's 8 year tenure.

That Bush is just an economic miracle worker. He managed to stagnate the market for 4 years!

[mbperrin]

22. And when you deflate for the past 4 years of 2-3% a year,

we're actually 10% or 1200 points UNDER where he started. The market high of nearly 12,000 in 1999 would have to be 13,500 or so at least to be comparable now, so this 10,500+ range is about 30% UNDER in the last five years.

So much for the secular trend.

Check out the similarities in earlier TULIP mania:
http://www.bell.lib.umn.edu/Products/tulips.html

[MGKrebs]

21. Venture capital is way down.

Sent by an acquaintance:

This morning's AJC has an article in the Business section showing that Venture Capital (VC) investment in Georgia has fallen from $2.2 Billion in Clinton's last year to $344 million in 2003 -- a decrease of 84%. Adjusting for the 23% decrease in the value of the dollar since Bush took office, this means that investment in Georgia is actually less than 1/8 of what it was in Clinton's final year. The reason is simple. When Venture Capitalists expect the economy to improve, they investment at high levels. When they foresee economic collapse, they won't invest.

Nationally, the picture is almost as bad -- an 83% drop in VC investment since 2000 from $105.9 billion to $18.2 billion. Again, adjusted for the declining value of our dollar VC investments nationwide are down 87% - almost 7/8's.

Please let me know if you have any questions on this. And please circulate this to your mailing lists.

[fob]

23. YAWN! Call me when bush* comes anywhere near THIS record

DJIA Jan 1993 - around 3,000

1995 Feb 23 Rises 30.28 to close at 4,003.33, first close above 4,000.00
Nov.21, 1995 Rises 40.46 to close at 5,023.55, first close above 5,000.00
1996 Oct. 14 Rises 40.62 to close at 6,010.00, first close above 6,000.00.
Nov. 06, 1996 Rises 96.53 to close at 6,177.71, first close above 6,100.00.
Nov. 07, 1996 Rises 28.33 to close at 6,206.04, first close above 6,200.00.
Nov. 14, 1996 Rises 38.76 to close at 6,313.00, first close above 6,300.00.
Nov. 20, 1996 Rises 32.42 to close at 6,430.02, first close above 6,400.00.
Nov. 25, 1996 Rises 76.03 to close at 6,547.79, first close above 6,500.00.
1997 Jan. 07 Rises 33.48 to close at 6.600.66, first close above 6,600.00.
Jan. 10, 1997 Rises 78.12 to close at 6,703.79, first close above 6,700.00.
Jan. 17, 1997 Rises 67.73 to close at 6,833.10, first close above 6,800.00.
Feb. 12, 1997 Rises 103.52 to close at 6,961.63, first close above 6,900.00
Feb. 13, 1997 Rises 60.81 to close at 7,022.44, first close above 7,000.00.
May 05, 1997 Rises 143.29 to close at 7,214.49, first close above 7,100.00 and 7,200.00.
May 15, 1997 Rises 47.39 to close at 7,333.55, first close above 7,300.00
Jun 06, 1997 Rises 130.49 to close at 7,438.78, first close above 7,400.00.
Jun. 10, 1997 Rises 60.77 to close at 7,539.27, first close above 7,500.00.
Jun. 12, 1997 Rises 135.64 to close at 7,711.47, first close above 7,600.00 and 7,700.00.
Jul. 03, 1997 Rises 100.53 to close at 7,895.91, first close above 7,800.00.
Jul. 11, 1997 Rises 35.06 to close at 7,921.82, first close above 7,900.00.
Jul. 16, 1997 Rises 63.17 to close at 8,038.88, first close above 8,000.00.
Jul. 24, 1997 Rises 28.57 to close at 8,116.93, first close above 8,100.00
Jul. 30, 1997 Rises 80.36 to close at 8,254.89, first close above 8,200.00
Oct. 27, 1997 Falls 554.26 to close at 7,161.15, third largest dollar loss in history, down 7.18%.
Trading of all securities is halted twice during the day, first interruption since the.March 30, 1981
assassination attempt on President Reagan.
Oct. 28, 1997 Rises 337.17 to close at 7,498.32, third largest dollar gain in history, up 4.71%
1998 Feb. 11 Rises 18.94 to close at 8,314.55, first close above 8,300.00
Feb. 18, 1998 Rises 52.56 to close at 8,451.06, first close above 8,400.00.
Feb. 27, 1998 Rises 55.05 to close at 8,545.72, first close above 8,500.00
Mar. 10, 1998 Rises 75.98 to close at 8,643.123, first close above 8,600.00.
Mar. 16, 1998 Rises 116.33 to close at 8,718.85, first close above 8,700.00.
Mar. 19, 1998 Rises 27.65 to close at 8,803.05, first close above 8,800.00.
Mar. 20, 1998 Rises 103.38 to close at 8,906.43, first close above 8,900.00.
Apr. 06, 1998 Rises 49.82 to close at 9,033.23, first close above 9,000.00.
Apr. 14, 1998 Rises 97.90 to close at 9,110.20, first close above 9,100.00.
May 13, 1998 Rises 50.07 to close at 9,211.84, first close above 9,200.00.
July 16, 1998 Rises 93.72 to close at 9,328.19, first close above 9,300.00.
Aug. 31, 1998 Falls 512.61 to close at 7,539.07 a 1,798.90 (19.26%) drop since July 17, 1998.
This is the fourth largest dollar loss in history eliminating all gains since June 10, 1997.
Sep.07, 1998 Rises 380.53 to close at 8,020.78, fifth largest dollar gain in history, up 4.98%.
Oct. 16, 1998 Rises 117.40 to close at 8,416.76, largest weekly dollar gain is history, up 517.24.
1999 Jan. 06 Rises 233.78 to close at 9,544.78, first close above 9,400.00 and 9,500.00.
Jan. 08, 1999 Rises 105.56 to close at 9,643.32, first close above 9,600.00.
Mar. 05, 1999 Rises 268.68 to close at 9,736.08, first close above 9,700.00.
Mar. 11, 1999 Rises 124.60 to close at 9,897.44, first close above 9,800.00.
Mar. 15, 1999 Rises 82.42 to close at 9,958.77, first close above 9,900.00
Mar. 29, 1999 Rises 184.54 to close at 10,006.78, first close above 10,000.00.
Apr. 08, 1999 Rises 112.39 to close at 10,197.70, first close above 10,100.00.
Apr. 12, 1999 Rises 165.67 to close at 10,339.51, first close above 10,200.00 and 10,300.00.
Apr. 14, 1999 Rises 16.65 to close at 10,411.66, first close above 10,400.00.
Apr. 21, 1999 Rises 132.87 to close at 10,581.42, first close above 10,500.00.
Apr. 22, 1999 Rises 145.76 to close at 10,727.18, first close above 10,600.00 and 10,700.00.
Apr. 27, 1999 Rises 113.12 to close at 10,831.71, first close above 10,800.00.
May 03, 1999 Rises 225.65 to close at 11,014.69, first close above 10,900.00 and 11,000.00.
May 13, 1999 Rises 106.82 to close at 11,107.19, first close above 11,100.00.
Jul 12, 1999 Rises 7.28 to close at 11,200.98, first close above 11,200.00.
Aug 25, 1999 Rises 42.74 to close at 11,326.04, first close above 11,300.00.
Nov 1, 1999 The DJIA dropped four corporations from its thirty corporation component, Chevron Corp.,
Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Sears, Roebuck & Co. and Union Carbide Corp.
Four corporations added were The Home Depot, Inc., Intel Corp., Microsoft Corp. and
SBC Communications, Inc.. . .. . . . The Current DOW 30
Dec 23, 1999 Rises 202.16 to close at 11,405.76, first close above 11,400.00.
2000 Jan 07 Rises 269.30 to close at 11,522.56, first close above 11,500.00.
Jan 14, 2000 Rises 140.55 to close at all time high of 11,722.98, first close above 11,600.00 and 11,700.00.

[llmart]

24. Big Deal

So we're all supposed to cheer because we've finally gotten back to where we were in April of 1999? Geez, Louise! That's something to cheer?

Besides, as it looks today, it was a one-day phenomenon.