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Telecommunications equipment industry

U.S. Share Prices Surge Amid Holiday Spirit, Ignoring Impeachment and Iraq War Concerns

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

U.S. share prices surged on Monday, defying concerns over the President's impeachment and war in Iraq, as investors became increasingly optimistic about the holiday season. Market analysts pointed to an end to the House's impeachment hearings and a decline in concerns about the war as key factors driving the market's strong performance. The Dow Jones Industrials rose 85.22 to 8,988.85, while the S&P 500 gained 14.81 to 1,202.84.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Dow Jones Industrials rose 85.22 to 8,988.85, a significant gain of 1.0% from the previous trading day.
  • The S&P 500 gained 14.81 to 1,202.84, an increase of 1.2% from the previous day.
  • Technologies led the sectors, with sales of personal computers strengthening as prices fell to record lows, according to reports from PC Data Corp.
  • Internet shares soared after positive comments on the sector by a Morgan Stanley broker appeared in Barron's, with Ebay, Amazon.com, and Yahoo! experiencing significant gains.
  • AOL and Dell announced a marketing deal, with AOL rising 12.5% and Dell up 5.7%.
  • Financial shares also gained, with J.P. Morgan and Merrill Lynch experiencing increases, as money managers put money into large-cap stocks.
  • Pharmaceutical shares were boosted by news of SmithKline Beecham's Lyme disease vaccination, with SmithKline rising 1.8%.
  • Motorola was closely watched after announcing the acquisition of Lucent Technologies' consumer wireless phone operations, with Motorola rising 2.3% and Lucent up 5.3%.

Statistics:

  • 742 million shares were traded on the New York Stock Exchange as the market opened strong.
  • NYSE advancers led decliners by 383 shares, with 1,717 advancers and 1,334 decliners.
  • Personal computer sales strengthened, with prices falling to record lows, according to PC Data Corp.
  • IBM rose 5.0% to 176 5/8, while Microsoft gained 1.9% to 140 7/16.
  • Internet shares soared, with Ebay up 44.1% to 296 3/8, Amazon.com up 10.3% to 318 3/4, and Yahoo! up 14.1% to 247 1/4.
  • AOL rose 12.5% to 116 3/4, while Dell up 5.7% to 71 15/16.

Sources:

  • Market News International
  • Barron's
  • PC Data Corp.
  • Morgan Stanley
  • Dean Witter
  • J.P. Morgan
  • Merrill Lynch
  • SmithKline Beecham
  • Lucent Technologies
  • Motorola
  • Dell
  • AOL

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