U.S. Stocks On The Rebound, Buoyed By IBM's Upbeat Earnings
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks rebounded on Monday, with the Dow industrials rising more than 100 points as International Business Machines Corp.'s preliminary results topped expectations and gave an oversold market reason to turn higher.
IBM delivered "a much-needed piece of good news," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Jefferies & Co.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 115.1 points to 12,721.4, with 22 of its 30 components ahead. Setting the pace were shares of IBM, up 6.6%, and Hewlett-Packard Co. , up 3.3%.
Dow laggards included Merck & Co. , shares of which traded down 2.1% after disappointing results from a study for a cholesterol drug.
The S&P 500 gained 9.09 points to 1,410.11, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 25.37 points to 2,465.31.
Early volume on the New York Stock Exchange came to 217 million, and advancing stocks lead decliners by 2 to 1. On the Nasdaq, 401 million shares changed hands, and advancers shot past decliners 8 to 5.
IBM credited stronger sales in Asia and Europe, as well as rising demand in emerging markets, as catalysts for its fourth-quarter surprise. The information-technology giant is slated to formally announce financial results on Thursday. .
While IBM led technology stocks higher, the retail sector was mixed in early trading. Shares of Sears Holdings Corp. fell 7.3%, retreating as the parent of the Sears and Kmart chains warned fourth-quarter earnings could amount to less than half of last year's. .
Crude moves
In commodities trading, crude-oil futures advanced, receiving a push from geopolitical tensions -- namely, tensions between the U.S. and Iran as well as unrest in Nigeria.
In recent action, crude for February delivery was up 54 cents at $93.23 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Over last week, crude slipped $5 a barrel to a three-week low.
A weaker dollar also gave a boost to dollar-denominated commodities, such as crude. The dollar index, which measures the U.S. unit against a basket of major currencies, was at 75.520, down from 76.030 in late trading Friday.
Energy shares rose along with the price of crude, with the Amex Oil Index up 0.9%.
Meanwhile, gold futures surged to a new record, climbing as high as the $915.90 mark and recently up $6.90 to stand at $904.60 an ounce.
Overnight, several markets traded lower in Asia, with resource stocks fronting the fallback. .
By Kate Gibson