Dow Average Sets Record As Stocks Rally on Oil’s Decline
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The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose to a record, capping a four-year rebound from the collapse of the Internet bubble, as a plunge in oil prices brightened the outlook for consumer spending.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s largest retailer, led the Dow’s advance along with Boeing Co., the world’s second- biggest maker of commercial aircraft. Boeing climbed after Airbus SAS postponed deliveries of its superjumbo A380 jet.
Stocks started rallying after crude oil fell below $59 a barrel for the first time since February. The 30-stock average surpassed its closing high for the fourth consecutive day and withstood a late retreat to set the record.
The Dow gained 56.99, or 0.5%, to 11,727.34, exceeding its peak of 11,722.98 on January 14, 2000. The record followed the best third quarter since 1995 for the average, which includes many of the biggest American companies by market value, as the Federal Reserve stopped raising interest rates.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index added 2.79, or 0.2%, to 1334.11. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 6.05, or 0.3%, at 2243.65.
Crude oil for November delivery fell 3.9% to $58.68 a barrel in New York, the lowest close since February 16. It was the biggest one day decline since August 17, 2005.
Since the last bear market ended four years ago, the Dow has risen 61%, led by a near quadrupling in shares of Caterpillar Inc., the biggest maker of earthmoving equipment. Hewlett-Packard Co., the world’s No. 2 personal computer maker, and JPMorgan Chase & Co., the third-biggest American bank, have tripled.
The 110-year-old Dow industrials lost 38% through October 9, 2002, after the Internet-led rally of the late 1990s ended. The index peaked about two months before the S&P 500 and Nasdaq set records.
This year, the Dow came within 81 points of the record in May and tumbled 8% in the next month. GM led the measure’s rebound by surging 32%. Microsoft Corp., the world’s No. 1 software maker, had the second-biggest gain, 27%. GM and Microsoft were among the seven current Dow stocks that had fallen since the October 2002 nadir through June 13 of this year.
