US stocks score small gains

by **hlk** Thu 20 Sep 2012, 10:22

NEW YORK: US stocks scored small gains on Wednesday as investors
weighed encouraging housing data and falling crude oil prices that
stoked hopes for more growth in the tepid economy.

The stock indexes opened mixed but found positive momentum after existing home sales data beat expectations.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 13.32 points (0.10 percent) to close at 13,577.96.

The
SandP 500-stock index rose 1.73 points (0.12 percent) to 1,461.05,
while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 4.82 points (0.15 percent) at
3,182.62.

The National Association of Realtors announced that
existing home sales across the country leaped 7.8 percent from July to
a two-year high, and were up 9.3 percent from a year ago.

"We're still getting continued decent news on housing," said Lee Munson at Portfolio LLC.

Crude
oil prices tumbled on speculation that Saudi Arabia would boost output
to cool prices. Brent, the global market benchmark, dropped almost US$4
to US$108.19 a barrel.

The steep fall in oil prices gives
investors confidence that going forward, commodity prices would not
hammer company earnings, Munson said.

Home builders in
particular benefited from a separate report from the Commerce
Department showing housing starts rose 2.3 percent from July, including
a 5.5 percent jump in starts on single-family homes.

DR Horton gained 4.1 percent, Lennar 1.9 percent, Pulte 4.3 percent and Toll Brothers 3.5 percent.

In
the automotive sector, Ford added 1.6 percent, GM 1.3 percent and truck
maker Oshkosh 2.8 percent, all in the wake of the resolution of a
looming strike by the Canadian Auto Workers union.

Online daily deals pioneer Groupon soared 13.9 percent after announcing a mobile payment service.

Apple held above the US$700 line, adding 0.03 percent at US$702.10.

Sprint Nextel, one of the telecoms firms that will offer Apple's new iPhone 5 on its network, leaped 7.1 percent.

Auto
parts dealer AutoZone meanwhile gained 3.4 percent after beating
analyst estimates for fourth-quarter profits, which rose 7.4 percent to
US$323.7 million. - AFP