(By Salman - iStockAnalyst Writer)US stocks finished with gains on Friday, with the Dow and S&P 500 hitting new 2009 highs, after a rally in technology stocks lifted investor optimism.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 78.07 points or 0.80% to finish at 9,864.94. The S&P 500 added 6.01 points or 0.56% to end at 1,071.49. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 15.35 points or 0.72% to 2,139.28.
Technology stocks rallied. Shares of International Business Machines (NYSE:
IBM) jumped $3.66 or 2.99% to $125.9. Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE:
HPQ) surged 93 cents or 2% to $47.39.
Among financials, shares of JP Morgan (NYSE:
JPM) rose 58 cents or 1.28% to $45.88. Citigroup (NYSE: C) on Friday announced that it has reached an agreement to sell its Phibro commodities unit to the oil and gas producer Occidental Petroleum.
Shares of energy giant Chevron Corp. (NYSE:
CVX) climbed $1.25 or 1.75% to $72.70.
President Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for his "extraordinary efforts" to "strengthen global diplomacy" and his efforts for getting rid of nuclear weapons.
Late on Thursday, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said that the central bank could tighten monetary policy when the economy "has improved sufficiently." The comment boosted US dollar against a basket of currencies. Commodity prices came under pressure following the Bernanke remarks.
A release by the Commerce Department on Friday showed that the U.S. trade gap unexpectedly narrowed in August to $30.7 billion. Imports fell by $913 million, or 0.6%, to $158.9 billion in August while exports climbed $228 million, or 0.2%, to $128.2 billion
Monsanto Co. (NYSE:
MON) said Thursday that the U.S. Department of Justice is reviewing its business to determine whether or not the largest seed company has violated any antitrust laws. Shares of the biggest seed company finished at $75.77, uo 80 cents or 1.07%.
Shares of Wynn Macau Ltd. casino company soared 13 percent in its trading debut on the Hong Kong stock exchange Friday, reflecting stronger faith in the southern Chinese gambling city's prospects.
General Motors Co. on Friday said that it signed an agreement to sell its Hummer SUV brand to China's Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery.
The International Energy Agency raised its expectations by 200,000 barrels a day to an average of 84.6 million barrels per day for 2009, and by 350,000 barrels per day to 86.1 million barrels per day for 2010.
European stocks settled mixed. The UK FTSE gained 7.23 points or 0.14% to 5,161.87. The German DAX and French CAC decreased 0.08% and 0.19% respectively.
Asian stocks finished higher. The Nikkei 225 jumped 183.92 points or 1.87% to 10,016.39. The Hang Seng index of Hong Kong rose 6.54 or 0.03% to 21,499.44.
NYMEX crude oil for November delivery climbed 12 cents to settle at $71.81 a barrel.
Disclosure: Author doesn't own any of the stocks discussed here.
