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10B – Daily News – Saturday, April 30, 2011 Furniture Depot 235 So. Main St., Red Bluff 527-1657 MON.-FRI. 9:00-6:00 SAT. 9:00-5:00 • SUN. 11:00-5:00 stock on hand Thru April 30th, 2011 NEW YORK (AP) — Caterpillar drove the Dow Jones industrial average higher Friday after the company reported a huge gain in first-quarter earn- ings. The world’s largest maker of mining and con- struction equipment rose 2.5 percent after its earn- ings increased more than five-fold. The company also raised its sales and profit forecast for the year. The Dow added 4 per- cent in April, its best month since December. The Dow rose 47.23 points Friday, or 0.4 per- cent, to close at 12,810.54. Caterpillar accounted for 21 points of those gains. The company’s stock has Strong earnings from Caterpillar drive Dow higher Wall Street soared over the past year on booming demand for its products. ‘‘The industrial sector and the manufacturing sec- tor of this country are much stronger than many investors have perceived,’’ said Rob Lutts, president and chief investment offi- cer of Cabot Money Man- agement. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 3.13 points, or 0.2 percent, to close at 1,363.61. The index gained 2.8 percent in April. The Nasdaq composite added 1.01 point to 2,873.54. It rose 3.3 per- cent for the month. Both the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 had their best month since February. Strong corporate earn- ings pushed major stock market indexes to 2011 highs in the last week of the month. On Wednesday, the S&P 500 doubled from its 12-year low reached on March 9, 2009 after the financial crisis. The Nas- daq is at its highest level since 2000. The Russell 2000 index of small stocks also hit a record high on Wednesday after the Fed pledged to keep short-term interest rates at record lows. That motivated investors to con- tinue buying risky invest- ments such as small stocks. The Russell has soared 77 percent over the past two years. Small-company stocks tend to rise more quickly than the overall market as the economy emerges from a recession. Investors also see them as likely takeover targets for larger companies that are flush with cash. The Rus- sell rose 3.74 points, or 0.4 percent, to 865.29 Friday. Goodyear Tire & Rub- ber Co. rose 12 percent, the most of any company in the Standard & Poor’s 500 index, after it set a compa- ny sales record and reversed its loss from the first quarter of last year. Coinstar Inc. rose 5 per- cent after the owner of Redbox DVD rental kiosks posted a 32 percent slashed its earnings and sales forecasts because of weak phone sales. The dollar fell to a three-year low against an index of six major curren- cies. It’s down 7.6 percent this year. The dollar has been sinking against other cur- rencies that have higher interest rates than the U.S. Low interest rates in the U.S. also encourage investors to borrow in dol- lars to buy investments denominated in other cur- rencies, which also pushes the dollar lower. Two stocks rose for increase in its net income. Research In Motion Ltd. fell 14 percent after the maker of the BlackBerry every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange. Trading volume was 3.7 billion shares. State regulator: Blue Cross rate hike was unreasonable LOS ANGELES (AP) — Double-digit rate hikes for 120,000 Anthem Blue Cross health insurance policyholders will take effect Sunday despite a state regulator’s determination the increase is unreasonable. A California Department of Managed Health Care review found the increases were 3 percent to 4 percent higher than individual plans with similar benefits under the jurisdiction of the state’s other insur- ance regulator, the Department of Insur- ance. “In the spirit of providing maximum transparency to consumers about rate St. Bernard Lodge increases, we have little choice but to pub- licly express our disappointment that Anthem Blue Cross didn’t lower the rates as we requested,” Department of Managed Health Care spokeswoman Lynne Ran- dolph said in a statement. The hikes will average almost 15 per- cent, and Friday’s declaration of disap- pointment marks the first time a rate was declared unreasonable by DMHC, the nation’s only regulator solely dedicated to health maintenance organizations. The department oversees policies for 21 million Californians. 10 miles west of Chester on Hwy. 36 For guests from Red Bluff join us for the weekend or just Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day Champagne Brunch Sunday, May 8 * 9 am - 2 pm Our brunch begins with our signature Shrimp Cocktail followed by our Buffet featuring Eggs Benedict, Chicken Fried Steak, Biscuits, Sausage Gravy, Bacon, Ham, Blueberry Crepes, Waffles, Chocolate Covered Strawberries, Assorted Salads, Chicken Alfredo, Vegetables, Potatoes, Desserts and of course our bottomless Mimosa or Champagne www.stbernardlodge.com Seating is limited so make your reservations early. 530-258-3382 In a statement, Anthem spokeswoman Kristin Binns said the regulator appeared to have changed its mind from a March 3 assessment that found the increase was not unreasonable or unjustified. Binns also disputed DMHC’s claim that Anthem’s DMHC-regulated plans are sim- ilar to those regulated by the Department of Insurance. “We are disappointed by this public announcement that contradicts the depart- ment’s action on Anthem’s rate filing for those products, and to which Anthem had no opportunity to respond,” Binns said. Both insurance regulators in California lack the power to reject rate hikes — a right regulators in 35 other states have. But that could change if California lawmakers approve a new bill that would vastly expand the powers. DMHC noted that it sent a letter to Anthem on April 7 to follow up and ask why holders of policies regulated by DMHC were paying more for the policies similar to those regulated by the Depart- ment of Insurance. COMFORT SERVICE INC. Air Conditioning & Heating Tehama Counties Factory authorized Bryant Dealer Your First Call For Comfort • RESIDENTIAL • COMMERCIAL • NEW CONSTRUCTION • SALES • SERVICE • REPAIRS 24 HOUR SERVICE 530 529-1990 Lic #593323 www.CascadeComfort.com $10 OFF SERVICE CALL Mention this ad for Whatever it takessm CASCADE *Limited to 1/2 off Select Items*