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Merrill's Strength Leads Rally  

Posted Apr 24, 08 3:38 PM CDT in Business    Most Covered

(newser) – Stocks rallied to solid gains today as good news from Merrill Lynch and better-than-expected jobless claims data overshadowed poor housing and durable-goods news, MarketWatch reports. The Dow gained 85.73 to close at 12,848.95, while the Nasdaq rose 23.71 to 2,428.92. The S&P 500 gained 8.89, ending at 1,388.82.

Merrill led a rally in financials after the brokerage announced it would maintain its dividend at 35 cents per share. Aiding the rise of financial stocks, insurer Traveler raised its earnings forecast for the remainder of 2008. “Justified or not, people's perception is we've seen the worst,” said one analyst. “The mentality is to be putting money to work in the market.''

Sources: MarketWatch, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg

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Merrill's Strength Leads Rally
A trader checks the monitors before the start of trading on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Thursday, April 24, 2008.   (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Merrill's Strength Leads Rally
Traders work on the floor before the start of trading at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Thursday, April 24, 2008.   (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Merrill's Strength Leads Rally
A trader pauses before the start of trading on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Thursday, April 24, 2008.   (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
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S&P 500  • Nasdaq  • Dow Jones Industrial Average  • Merrill Lynch  • jobless claims  • durable goods  • financial stocks


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