Dow Regains 10,000, as Greek Debt Fears Subside
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2/09/10NEW YORK (TheStreet) – The Dow regained 10,000 Tuesday, as stocks shrugged off an unexpected dip in December wholesale trade inventories and investors grew optimistic Greece’s debt problems would soon be addressed.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up by 114 points, or 1.2%, to 10,023. The S&P 500 gained 11 points, or 1%, to 1068 and the Nasdaq added 19 points, or 0.9%, to 2145.
Futures perked up Tuesday morning on word European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet left a meeting in Australia early to return to Europe. Some speculated Trichet’s change in plans were a signal he was close to addressing Greece’s severe debt problems. He will attend a special EU Summit in Brussels Thursday.
The Department of Commerce said December wholesale trade inventories slipped 0.8%, disappointing expectations for a 0.5% uptick. The November figure was upwardly revised to 1.6%, from 1.5%.
In earnings news, UBS(UBS Quote) swung to a fourth-quarter profit and topped analysts’ estimates.
Coca-Cola(KO Quote) met analysts’ fourth-quarter profit expectations and surpassed sales estimates, helped by robust international unit case volume.
Warner Music(WMG Quote) reported a loss that was narrower than expected.
Pulte Homes’ fourth-quarter loss of 31 cents a share narrowed from the prior year, and the company said it expects cost savings by the end of 2010. Analysts, meanwhile, had been expecting a loss of 19 cents a share.
McDonald’s reported a 2.6% surge in global same-store sales in January. Domestic sales, however, fell 0.7%.
After the close of trading, the market will hear from Chinese Internet search engine Baidu(BIDU Quote), Lions Gate Entertainment(LGF Quote), Walt Disney(DIS Quote) and XL Capital(XL Quote).
In other news, Toyota(TM Quote) said it will recall roughly 437,000 hybrid cars, including the popular Prius model.
General Motors’ Opel business said it will invest 11 billion euros ($15.1 billion) over five years to breathe some life into the brand. The division also plans to cut 8,300 jobs.
At 4:30 p.m. EST, the American Petroleum Institute is expected to release weekly inventory information. Analysts polled by Platts anticipate build of 2 million barrels in crude oil supplies and an increase of 1 million barrels in gasoline stocks. Distillate stockpiles are projected to decline by 1.75 million barrels because analysts expect that the recent cold snap moved more product through the distribution system.
Crude oil for March delivery was trading 90 cents higher at $72.79 a barrel.
The greenback fell against a basket of currencies, with the dollar index lower by 0.4%.
The most actively traded April gold contract added $6.50 to trade at $1,072.70 an ounce.
The benchmark 10-year Treasury note weakened 9/32, lifting the yield to 3.596%.
Overseas, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was higher by 1.2%, and Japan’s Nikkei was down by 0.2%. The FTSE in London was 0.5% higher, and the DAX in Frankfurt was also ahead by 0.5%.
– Written by Melinda Peer in New York.
