Wall Street heads for final stretch

Sunday, December 06, 2009
NEW YORK: Wall Street heads into the final stretch of 2009 with fresh confidence that the worst of the economic crisis is over, setting up a positive environment for the market heading into 2010.

The main US stock indexes notched gains in the week to Friday, buoyed by data showing a sharp turnaround in the job market that offered hopes for a sustained recovery from recession.

The market extended the powerful rally that began in March, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 0.76 per cent for the week to 10,388.22. The tech-dominant Nasdaq composite jumped 2.61 per cent to 2,194.35 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 broad-market climbed 1.33 per cent on the week to 1,105.98. With a rally of more than 60 per cent from the lows in March, the Dow has risen 18.37 per cent for 2009, while the Nasdaq is up 39.14 per cent and the S&P 500 index 22.44 per cent.

The market was reassured by Friday’s data showing a dramatic turnaround in the US labor market. The November data showed job losses narrowed to 11,000 from 111,000 in October, and the unemployment rate dipped to 10 per cent from 10.2 per cent.