Friday, January 21, 2011

GE lifts Dow, S&P 500 but S&P's 7-week streak ends

The Dow and S&P 500 rose as General Electric Co's earnings put a positive tone on the economic recovery, snapping a two-day losing skid for the benchmark index.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 49.04 points, or 0.41 percent, to end at 11,871.84. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index added 3.09 points, or 0.24 percent, to 1,283.35. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 14.75 points, or 0.55 percent, to 2,689.54.

European shares rose as Spain's plans to part nationalise its debt-laden savings banks boosted banking stocks, while forecast beating results from US bellwether General Electric also improved market sentiment.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares closed 0.8 percent higher at 1,148.32 points recovering after two-days of losses, though ended off the day's high as some investors took profits ahead of the weekend.

Japan's Nikkei fell 1.6 percent to cap its biggest weekly loss in three months, as lower commodities prices weighed on energy-related stocks and spurred profit-taking after a recent rally.

Technical factors showed a weakening of sentiment as the benchmark Nikkei broke through important technical support levels. It sank below the 10,420 level, where December futures and option prices settled, and then its 25-day moving average at 10,400.

It ended the day down 1.6 percent to 10,274.52, marking its biggest daily fall in two months.

The broader Topix index lost 1.8 percent.