The Rising Influence of Rising Affluence

[DewDiligence]

Stocks Close at 4-Year High

[Actually, not quite. Although the DJIA closed at the highest level since 2008 and the Nasdaq closed at the highest level since late 2000, the S&P 500 remains about 2% below its May 2011 high. (Including reinvested dividends, the S&P 500 is very nearly even with its May 2011 high.)]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203711104577200541043672370.html

›FEBRUARY 3, 2012, 4:22 P.M. ET
By CHRIS DIETERICH And CHRISTIAN BERTHELSEN

Stocks rose after the U.S. economy added more jobs than expected last month, driving the Nasdaq Composite to an 11-year high and pushing the Dow to its highest reading in almost four years.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 154 points, or 1.2%, to 12859, its highest close since May 2008. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index tacked on 19 points, or 1.5%, to 1345, for its fifth straight weekly gain.

The technology-oriented Nasdaq Composite Index gained 46 points, or 1.6%, to 2906, its highest level since December 2000. The Nasdaq is off to its best start to the year since 1991, up 12%.

All 10 of the S&P 500's sectors rose Friday, with financials and consumer-discretionary stocks leading the way. Among blue chips, Bank of America rose 5.2% and Caterpillar added 3.3% [see #msg-71486409, #msg-71610153].

Friday's gains followed a strong employment report from the U.S. Labor Department. January data showed nonfarm payrolls rose 243,000 last month, marking the biggest gain since April. The jobless rate fell from 8.5% to 8.3%, the lowest it has been since February 2009.

Stocks popped higher at the open and cruised along in positive territory all day.

"The data seem to show the economy is mending a bit faster than it was a year or two years ago," said David Resler, chief economic adviser for Nomura Securities.

The Stoxx Europe 600 rose 1.7%, closing at a six-month high. Asian bourses were mixed, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average down 0.5% and China's Shanghai Composite up 0.8%.

Gold futures dropped 1.1% to $1,737.90 a troy ounce, while crude-oil prices rose 1.5% to $97.84 a barrel. The dollar gained against the euro and yen. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 1.936%.

In corporate news, Genworth Financial swung to a fourth-quarter profit as the insurer enjoyed net investment gains rather than losses and reported lower policy benefits. Shares climbed 14%.

Gilead Sciences' fourth-quarter earnings rose 5.7% as the biopharmaceutical company's product sales continued to rise and it no longer booked deep reductions in royalties. Shares gained 11%. [LOL—they missed the HCV impetus for today’s move.]

Wynn Resorts' fourth-quarter profit climbed 67% on a tax benefit and as the casino operator's Macau operations continued to post revenue growth, yet a battle between Chief Executive Steve Wynn and a shareholder overshadowed the results. Shares fell 4.8%.‹