Teen Retailers Impress in December
The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 33 points, or 0.3%, at 10,607, and the S&P 500 gained 5 points, or 0.4%, at 1142. The Nasdaq declined by 1 point, or 0.1%, at 2300.
Bank stocks rallied past other sectors today, helping prop up the major market averages. Bank of America(BAC Quote) received an upgrade at Credit Suisse, lifting shares 3.3%.
>>Job Growth on Tap?
The note's "more constructive" outlook on banks lifted shares across the financial sector, as the KBW Bank Index surged 4.1%.
General Electric(GE Quote) advanced the most on the Dow, improving by 5.2% on heavy volumes. Alcoa(AA Quote) shares suffered a 2.1% slide -- the steepest dip on the blue-chip average -- after Citi analysts cut its rating ahead of next week's earnings release.
Stocks traded in a tight range in the morning after initial jobless claims came in at 434,000 for the week ended Jan. 2 -- 1,000 higher than the previous week. Economists had been expecting weekly claims of 445,000. The four-week moving average fell for the 18th week in a row, signaling that the improvement trend remains intact and, at 450,240, it marked the lowest level since September 2008.
Robert Pavlik, chief market strategist at Banyan Partners, attributed the early market weakness to investors playing it safe ahead of Friday's key December nonfarm payrolls report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
"There's a bit of cautiousness heading into the nonfarm payrolls report, since very few people want to put their necks on the line before they know what's going on," Pavlik said, adding that overseas weakness and a slightly stronger dollar were also pressuring stocks.
Wall Street has been preoccupied with the employment picture this week as it looks forward to Friday's employment data for December. Economists expect the unemployment rate to hold at 10%, but optimistic market-watchers hope the report will reveal improvements in the labor market, a key indication that the economic recovery is on track.
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