(dpa) - US stocks climbed on Wednesday
for the first time this week on positive earnings from Boeing, Philip Morris
International and others.
Aerospace giant Boeing said profits rose 38 per cent to 1.21 billion dollars in
the first quarter, while tobacco firm Philip Morris said earnings rose 29 per
cent from the year-earlier period.
Technology stocks were up more than 1 per cent after EMC Corp, the world's
largest maker of storage computers, said revenue increased 14 per cent in North
America despite fears of a US recession.
Insurer Safeco shares shot up after it agreed to be bought out by Liberty
Mutual Group for 6.2 billion dollars, but worse-than-expected results from
Ambac Financial Corp kept alive fears of more credit- crisis related writedowns
from banks.
The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 42.99 points, or 0.34 per cent,
to 12,763.22. The broader Standard & Poor 500 Index was up 3.99
points, or 0.29 per cent, to 1,379.93. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 28.27
points, or 1.19 per cent, to 2,405.21.
The dollar rose against the euro to 62.96 euro cents from
62.55 euro cents on Tuesday, and to 103.44 Japanese yen from 103.01 yen.
Gold fell 16.20 dollars to 909.00 dollars per fine ounce.