MW: Stocks gain as Bernanke supports more stimulus
By Kate Gibson, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks on Monday remained mostly higher, with energy shares fronting the modest gains, as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke backed more fiscal stimulus and investors digested quarterly earnings reports from an array of sectors.
On Capitol Hill, Bernanke told the House Budget Committee that "consideration of a fiscal package by the Congress at this juncture seems appropriate." Read the full story.
Off earlier highs, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was lately up 61.73 points to 8,913.95, with 17 of its 30 components trading higher.
Oil giants Chevron Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp ed the gainers, up 4.9% and 3.6%, respectively.
Energy shares advanced along with crude, with oil futures up 32 cents to $72.17 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Read Futures Movers.
Also bolstering the Dow, shares of General Motors Corp gained 0.8% amid varying reports on the status of talks between the auto maker and Chrysler.
The Detroit News reported GM and Chrysler are pushing for a deal before the Nov. 4 presidential election. But another report from The Wall Street Journal said talks are floundering because GM is unable to secure the financing necessary for a deal. Read more.
The cost of short-term loans fell, with the London interbank offered rate, or Libor, down sharply in a move economists say signals the money markets are slowly returning to normal. See full story.
The S&P 500 rose 8.56 points to 949.11, with energy, telecommunication services and utilities leading gains that included all but three of the index's 10 industry groups.
Financials led sector declines, with the bigger laggards including General Growth Properties Inc. , off 13.4%, and Developers Diversified Realty , down 12.2%.
The technology-laden Nasdaq Composite declined 9.53 points to 1,701.76. SanDisk Corp.'s shares fell 9.5% after the memory-chip maker said it would sell 30% of its manufacturing capacity to Toshiba Corp. See full report.
Hasbro Inc topped expectations, while rival toy maker Mattel Inc missed forecasts. Read details.
Leading economic indicators rise
The Conference Board's index of leading economic indicators climbed 0.3% in September, its first gain since April. Read Economic Report.
Electricity generator Exelon Corp. offered $6.2 billion in stock to buy NRG Energy Inc. n a deal that would create the largest power company in the U.S. Read more.
Shares of Ericsson AB rose as much as 20% Monday after the world's largest maker of wireless networks posted a better-than-expected third-quarter profit, as sales surged and cost cuts started to bear fruit. Read full report.
On Friday, U.S. stocks slipped, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 127 points, the Nasdaq Composite dropping 6 points and the S&P 500 losing 5 points.
