U.S. stocks blazed a steady path higher today, as investors rolled the bullish dice ahead of this weekend's highly anticipated summit of European Union (EU) leaders. Although German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy said no decisions would be made until a second meeting early next week, the duo vowed to come up with a "comprehensive and ambitious" plan to tackle the euro zone's fiscal problems. On the home front, meanwhile, Wall Street is also applauding solid earnings from blue-chip behemoths McDonald's (MCD) and Honeywell (HON), which have helped to offset a less-than-stellar earnings showing from fellow Dow component General Electric (GE). Against this rose-colored backdrop, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) ended north of 11,800 for the first time since Aug. 3, extending its winning streak to four straight weeks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA – 11,808.79) finished near a session high, advancing 267 points, or 2.3%, when all was said and done. Only Bank of America (BAC) and General Electric bucked the trend, giving up 0.2% and 1.9%, respectively, while Travelers (TRV) led the 28 advancing blue chips with a gain of 5.2%. For the week, the Dow rallied 1.4%, and ended north of its 20-week moving average for the first time since mid-July.
The S&P 500 Index (SPX – 1,238.25) also ended near an intraday acme, tacking on 22.9 points, or 1.9%, by the close. For the week, the SPX added 1.1%, extending its own winning streak to three straight, and ending above its 20-week trendline for the first time in three months. Finally, the Nasdaq Composite (COMP – 2,637.46) broke out of the red to gain 38.8 points, or 1.5%, but settled the week 1.1% lower.
HAPPY WEEKEND
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