Sep. 13--The Asbury Park Press/Bloomberg 75 index rose to its highest level since last October on signs that the economy is beginning to recover.

The index, made up of 75 companies that are either headquartered at the Shore or have significant operations in New Jersey, was at 105.10 Friday at 5 p.m., up 2.79 points, or 2.73 percent.

Fifty-seven companies advanced and 18 companies declined.

The index has risen 9 percent since the beginning of the year.

The companies with the biggest percentage gains were: Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., $7.20, up $1.01, or 16.3 percent; Alcatel-Lucent, $4.07, up 48 cents, or 13.4 percent; Avis Budget Group Inc., $11.70, up $1.31, or 12.6 percent; The Macerich Co., $29.45, up 3.27, or 12.5 percent; Foster Wheeler AG, $32.57, up $3.51, or 12.1 percent.

Ben Verwaayen, chief executive officer of Paris-based Alcatel-Lucent, last week was in China and said his company is on track to meet its profit goals through 2011. He also declined to report on an alliance with China's Huawei Technologies Co., Dow Jones reported.

Foster Wheeler AG, headquartered in Clinton, gained ground. Iraq's deputy oil minister said last week that the country will take most of next year to study the feasibility of building a refinery at Nassiriyah. It hired Foster Wheeler to do the study.

The companies with the biggest percentage losses were: Monmouth Real Estate Investment Corp., $6.94, down 23 cents, or 3.21 percent; Church & Dwight Co. Inc., $55.36, down $1.14, or 2.02 percent; Osteotech Inc., $4.40, down 9 cents, or 2 percent; Pepco Holdings Inc., $13.89, down 28 cents, or 1.98 percent; and Wal-Mart Stores Inc., $50.72, down 96 cents, or 1.86 percent.

Pepco, a Washington, D.C.-based energy company which owns Atlantic City Electric, began trading this week without the right to receive a 27-cent dividend declared July 23. Investors had to own the stock before Sept. 8 to receive the payout.

And Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart declined. Johnson Redbook Research reported U.S. same store sales for the week ending Sept. 5 rose .2 percent from the same time last year.

Bloomberg News Service contributed to this story.

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