Surging Wall Street faces earnings season test
Sunday, 5 April 2009
NEW YORK, Apr 4 (AFP): After putting together a remarkable four-week winning streak, Wall Street faces a new test of its rally in the coming week with the opening of earnings season.
Although the market has been lifted by optimism that the worst crisis since the Great Depression is easing, the news from corporate America may provide clues about whether and when recovery is coming, say analysts.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 3.10 per cent in the week to Friday to close at 8,017.59, capping four sizzling weeks that added some 22 per cent to the blue-chip index.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index advanced 3.25 per cent to 842.50, capping a 24 per cent gain from lows hit March 9.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq powered higher by 4.96 per cent on the week to 1,621.87.
The market managed to shrug off weak economic news in the past few sessions, amid a growing consensus that the worst may be over.
"While the economic news continues to be awful, recent news, including the small incremental bump in auto sales, factory orders and (a purchasing manager survey on) manufacturing, are leading many investors to believe the end of the economic recession is finally coming into sight," said Fred Dickson, chief market strategist at DA Davidson & Company.
Although the market has been lifted by optimism that the worst crisis since the Great Depression is easing, the news from corporate America may provide clues about whether and when recovery is coming, say analysts.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 3.10 per cent in the week to Friday to close at 8,017.59, capping four sizzling weeks that added some 22 per cent to the blue-chip index.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index advanced 3.25 per cent to 842.50, capping a 24 per cent gain from lows hit March 9.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq powered higher by 4.96 per cent on the week to 1,621.87.
The market managed to shrug off weak economic news in the past few sessions, amid a growing consensus that the worst may be over.
"While the economic news continues to be awful, recent news, including the small incremental bump in auto sales, factory orders and (a purchasing manager survey on) manufacturing, are leading many investors to believe the end of the economic recession is finally coming into sight," said Fred Dickson, chief market strategist at DA Davidson & Company.