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CNBC ON DIGG

Dow Gains 0.8% as Financials Rebound

Published: Monday, 2 Nov 2009 | 5:49 PM ET

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By: Cindy Perman
Writer

A late rally helped propel the Dow to a positive finish Monday as financial stocks rebounded.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 76.71, or 0.8 percent, to close at 9,789.44. The Nasdaq added 0.2 percent and the S&P 500 advanced 0.7 percent.

Stocks had charged out of the gate, with the Dow up more than 140 points, after a report showed manufacturing expanded more than expected last month. Then, stocks retreated around midday, led by financials and techs, before clawing back in the last few hours of trading.

Major U.S. Indexes

.DJIA

.NCOMP

.SPX

American Express [AXP Loading... () ] was the biggest gainer on the Dow, followed by United Technologies [UTX Loading... () ] and JPMorgan [JPM Loading... () ].

Bank of America [BAC Loading... () ] eked out a 0.3-percent gain after starting the day at the top of the Dow pack, then falling to the bottom, before crawling higher.

Citigroup [C Loading... () ] shed 2.4 percent, finishing below $4 a share, a level it hasn't seen since mid-August.

Traders said it was one-two punch for financials that caused that midday bobble: It was in part Citi's drop below $4 but also testimony from Jon Greenlee, director of the Fed's Division of Banking Supervision and Regulation, to a House panel, warning about banks' potential losses from commercial real-estate loans.

Telecoms Verizon and AT&T [T Loading... () ] were among the drags on the Dow as investors took profits after the sector's recent gains.

Intel [INTC Loading... () ] also dragged on the Dow as techs were weak after a report showed chip sales rose in the third quarter but revenue remains below year-ago levels.

Stocks got off with a surge this morning after the ISM reported its gauge of manufacturing activity in the U.S. came in at 55.7 in October, the third straight month of growth and the highest reading since April 2006. Anything above 50 indicates expansion. Economists had expected the gauge to rise to 53.

The encouraging reading on U.S. manufacturing came after three reports from around the globe showed an improvement in manufacturing: First, a report showed China's manufacturing sector expanded at its fastest pace in 18 months in October amid rising demand from both overseas and at home. Then, a report showed factory activity in the euro zone expanded for the first time in 17 months and also picked up in the U.K.

Among the other U.S. economic data this morning: Pending-home sales rose to their highest level in nearly three years in September, boosted by the first-time homebuyers tax credit. Also for September, construction spending rose 0.8 percent.

FOR INVESTORS

The market rebound came after Friday, when the Dow and S&P 500 experienced their biggest one-day percentage drops since July.

Among the early buzz in the market, Ford [F Loading... () ] stunned Wall Street, reporting a quarterly profit and saying that 2011 should be "solidly profitable." Analysts had expected Ford to post a loss of 11 cents a share, but the company instead earned seven cents. Ford shares jumped more than 8 percent.

This came a day before automakers report their October sales. Analysts say sales likely rose last month but caution that they are still at 1980s levels.

A couple days before retailers report on their October sales, Wal-Mart [WMT Loading... () ] once again slashed its toy prices. Wal-Mart shares rose 1.2 percent.

Retailers are expected to report an uptick in sales but analysts remain wary about the outlook for the holiday season.

Retailers started the day mostly lower but recovered and finished the day mostly higher. Department stores Sears [SHLD Loading... () ] and Bon-Ton [BONT Loading... () ] skidded, while Gap [GPS Loading... () ] and Bed, Bath & Beyond [BBBY Loading... () ] were among the sector's notable gainers.

In the morning's other earnings news, Clorox [CLX Loading... () ] reported its profit jumped 23 percent as consumers stocked up on disinfectant products amid swine-flu fears. Its shares rose 0.3 percent.

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Human Genome Sciences [HGSI Loading... () ] shares soared 35 percent after the company said its experimental lupus drug was successful in a second clinical trial. It would be the first new lupus treatment in 50 years.

Also in the sector, Vertex Pharma [VRTX Loading... () ] shares leaped 7.7 percent after the company said a phase II study showed that twice-daily treatments of its experimental hepatitis C drug telaprevir worked as well as three times a day.

Elsewhere, Royal Caribbean [RCL Loading... () ] shares gained after an upgrade from Wells Fargo, and Progressive [PGR Loading... () ] shares jumped after Barron's said the insurer was set to expand earnings and revenue for the first time in years.

CIT Group [CIT Loading... () ] shares tumbled 65 percent to 25 cents in their last official day of trading. The small-business lender officially filed for bankruptcy protection over the weekend following the failure of a proposed debt exchange offer to bondholders. The filing is one of the biggest in U.S. corporate history.