(By Salman - iStockAnalyst Writer) US stocks finished higher on Monday as better-than-expected housing and manufacturing data sparked a rally in financial and technology shares.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 76.71 points or 0.79% to finish at 9,789.44. The S&P 500 climbed 6.69 points or 0.65% to end at 1,042.88. The Nasdaq Composite increased 4.09 points or 0.20% to 2,049.20.
The Commerce Department reported Monday that US construction spending unexpectedly rose 0.8% in September. Economists were expecting a 0.2% decline in September construction spending.
A survey by the Institute for Supply Management showed nationwide manufacturing activity jumped to 55.7 in October, from 53 in the previous month. Economists expected the manufacturing index to rise to 54. Readings above 50 indicate expansion, while figures below 50 suggest contraction.
Meanwhile, according to the National Association of Realtors, pending home sales rose much more than expected, by 6.1%, in September. Analysts were expecting an increase of 1.2%.
Shares of financials finished higher. American Express Co. (NYSE:
AXP) rallied 84 cents or 2.41% to close at $35.68. JP Morgan & Chase & Co. (NYSE:
JPM) jumped 81 cents or 1.94% to close at $41.77.
Shares of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:
UTX) gained $1.21 or 1.97% to $62.66.
Consumer giant Procter & Gamble co. (NYSE:
PG) climbed 95 cents or 1.64% to $58.95.
Shares of diversified US firm General Electric Co. (NYSE:
GE) increased 21 cents or 1.47% to $14.47.
PC maker Hewlett Packard (NYSE:
HPQ) advanced 70 cents or 1.47% to $48.16.
Shares of DuPont Co. (NYSE:
DD) rose 45 cents or 1.41% to $32.27.
Early on Monday, Ford (NYSE:
F) announced that it swung to third-quarter net income of $997 million, or 29 cents a share, compared to a loss of $161 million, or 7 cents a share, in the year-ago quarter.
