U.S. Stocks Mostly Higher After Economic Data, Monsanto Outlook
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks on Thursday were mostly higher, casting aside two days of losses after economic data offered more solid-than-expected readings on the labor and manufacturing front and agricultural giant Monsanto Co. hiked its yearly forecast.
this morning, which shed a little constructive light on tomorrow's December payrolls outlook," said analysts at Action Economics.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 19.4 points at 13,064.4, with 17 of its 30 components trading higher.
Dow component Merck & Co. Inc. was up 0.1% in early trading after the drug maker said it would pay as much as $702 million to Switzerland's Addex to license a potential schizophrenia treatment.
Broader indexes were mixed. The S&P 500 gained 2.11 points to 1,449.27, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 5.72 points to 2,603.91.
Shares of Monsanto hit an all-time high of $119.80 after the company raised its outlook for fiscal 2008 and reported nearly tripling its first-quarter profit. More recently, Monsanto shares were up 5.1%. .
On Wednesday, stocks dropped sharply as rising energy prices heightened worries about the economy, with the Dow industrials tallying its worst opening-day performance in 25 years.
Crude-oil futures, which hit a record $100 a barrel on Wednesday, reversed earlier losses after the government reported a drop in U.S. inventories. The spot month contract was up 4 cents at $99.66 in trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Elsewhere on the NYMEX, gold futures gained $4.30 to $864.3, after hitting a high of $871.20 earlier, topping the prior day's record high.
Stocks added to their gains after the Commerce Department reported a 1.5% hike in factory orders in November, with the increase more than double the 0.7% expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. .
Ahead of the opening bell, ADP Employer Services reported the addition of 40,000 jobs in the private sector last month, the weakest growth since August.
The report, which comes a day before the Labor Department issues its jobs report for December, is viewed as offering the Federal Reserve another reason to cut interest rates again later this month. .
Separately, the government reported first-time jobless claims fell 21,000 to 336,000 for the week ending Dec. 29, while revising the prior week's count to 357,000, the highest count since October 2005.
Around 11 a.m. Eastern, automakers will report on U.S. sales for December, with analysts largely expecting the industry to report its worst numbers in nearly a decade. .
By Kate Gibson