Stocks surged, with the Nasdaq Composite surged 1.5%, the highest close since December 2000, as the outlook for Greece’s bailout improved and American jobless claims slid to 348,000, the lowest level since March 2008.Also, the Philly Fed’s manufacturing index in February rose to 10.2, the highest level since October and better than expected, and housing starts were up 1.5% in January, wholesale prices climbed 0.1% on the month. Tech stocks recovered from the previous day losses led by gains from NetApp which surged more than 7% on quarterly results. Nvidia rose almost 2% after giving a disappointing quarterly forecast late Wednesday. Gains also came from Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Seagate Technology, Apple and Cisco. Applied Materials climbed 4.7% late Thursday after the co.’s quarterly results and forecast surpassed analyst expectations. Implied volatility inched lower on moderate trading volumes.
Friday, February 17, 2012
Surged on Greece and jobless claims
Stocks surged, with the Nasdaq Composite surged 1.5%, the highest close since December 2000, as the outlook for Greece’s bailout improved and American jobless claims slid to 348,000, the lowest level since March 2008.Also, the Philly Fed’s manufacturing index in February rose to 10.2, the highest level since October and better than expected, and housing starts were up 1.5% in January, wholesale prices climbed 0.1% on the month. Tech stocks recovered from the previous day losses led by gains from NetApp which surged more than 7% on quarterly results. Nvidia rose almost 2% after giving a disappointing quarterly forecast late Wednesday. Gains also came from Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Seagate Technology, Apple and Cisco. Applied Materials climbed 4.7% late Thursday after the co.’s quarterly results and forecast surpassed analyst expectations. Implied volatility inched lower on moderate trading volumes.
