Market Report

Rise in stocks extends week's rally

Trader Dudley Devine works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Tuesday, March 12, 2019. Another slide in Boeing weighed on the Dow Jones Industrial Average. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Trader Dudley Devine works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Tuesday, March 12, 2019. Another slide in Boeing weighed on the Dow Jones Industrial Average. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Technology and health care companies led U.S. stock indexes mostly higher Tuesday, building on the market's solid gains from a day earlier.

Boeing weighed down the Dow Jones industrial average for a second day as shares in the aircraft-maker fell amid safety concerns after another deadly crash involving its most popular plane. The company led a slide in industrial-sector stocks.

A report showing that U.S. consumer prices rose modestly last month -- the latest evidence that inflation remains in check -- also helped lift stocks.

The benchmark S&P 500 index gained 8.22 points, or 0.3 percent, to 2,791.52. The Dow fell 96.22 points, or 0.4 percent, to 25,554.66.

The Nasdaq composite, which is heavily weighted with technology stocks, climbed 32.97 points, or 0.4 percent, to 7,591.03. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies picked up 0.96 point, or 0.1 percent, to 1,549.83.

The gains extend a rebound in stocks after last week ended as the market's worst since December.

"It just goes to show that investors are taking advantage of the pullback we had last week," said Lindsey Bell, investment strategist at CFRA. "What's notable in the last couple of days is the move you're seeing in the Nasdaq. You're starting to see that return to growth in the market right now."

Major European stock indexes finished mostly higher before Britain's Parliament voted to reject a deal on the U.K.'s exit from the European Union. The move plunges the exit process into chaos just 17 days before Britain is due to leave the bloc.

Traders appeared to mostly shrug off the developments in Britain, though U.S. indexes lost some of their gains toward the end of the day as the vote was being held.

The two-day rally has helped the market reclaim the momentum it had in January and February, when it posted the best two-month start to a year since 1991. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq are showing double-digit gains for the year, and the Dow is up more than 9 percent.

Investors are still waiting for more details on any potential trade deal between the U.S. and China. Tariffs have hurt both nations, and investors hope a deal can be struck to at least take some pressure off the global economy, which has shown signs of cooling off.

Technology and health care stocks did the most to push the market higher Tuesday. Apple and UnitedHealth each rose 1.1 percent.

Boeing shares slid 6.1 percent, the stock's second day of steep losses, as more countries grounded the aircraft manufacturer's 737 Max 8 after the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines plane Sunday killed 157 people. A similar Lion Air jetliner crashed in Indonesia in October, killing 189 people.

Britain joined a growing number of countries to ground the plane. Australia and Singapore suspended all flights for such planes into or out of their countries. Airlines in China and Indonesia, Aeromexico, Brazil's Gol Airlines, India's Jet Airways and others have done the same.

The Labor Department's latest snapshot of consumer prices put investors in a buying mood. The consumer price index rose 1.5 percent last month from a year before. The small increase is the latest evidence that inflation remains muted, which gives the Federal Reserve more flexibility in holding off on further interest rate increases, said Eric Wiegand, senior portfolio manager for Private Wealth Management at U.S. Bank.

"The markets are reflecting a more favorable interpretation of the shift in central bank policies," he said. "They're creating more of a favorable backdrop."

Business on 03/13/2019

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