Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/13344
6A – Daily News – Wednesday, July 14, 2010 NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market got a shot of confidence from the start of second-quarter earnings season. Investors sent stocks sharply higher Tuesday after better-than-expected profits from aluminum maker Alcoa Inc. and rail- road operator CSX Corp. The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than 145 Stocks surge after Alcoa, CSX report strong profit Wall Street points for its sixth straight gain, and the major indexes were up well over 1 per- cent. There was more good news from Intel Corp. after the close of trading. The chip maker reported earn- ings and revenue that beat analysts’ expectations, and it also raised its forecast for the year. Its stock shot up more than 5 percent in after-hours trades. The companies, among the first to report second- quarter earnings, also issued upbeat forecasts for the rest of the year. That was heartening news for investors who have been concerned that the recovery was stalling, or that the economy might even fall back into recession. ‘‘When we go back to earnings and fundamentals, companies are delivering,’’ said Tom Karsten, senior managing partner at Karsten Financial in Fort Worth, Texas. Alcoa’s earnings reports are closely watched because its varied customer base provides a snapshot of a broad range of other industries. CSX also pro- vides insight into economic activity because it ships a wide range of products. And Intel’s results are con- sidered a good gauge of the health of the economy since its sales are driven by consumers and businesses buying computers. Alcoa said global con- sumption of aluminum will grow this year by more than it had forecast just three months ago. There have been concerns that the global economic recovery will end as many European nations face mounting gov- ernment debt problems and high unemployment slows growth in the U.S. CSX, meanwhile, said it sees its the economy’s upward momentum contin- uing this year. Frank Ingarra, co-port- folio manager of Hennessy Funds in Stamford, Conn., Earnings will likely continue to dictate trading over the next few weeks as hundreds of companies release results. Major banks begin reporting their results on Thursday. The Dow rose 146.75, or 1.4 percent, to 10,363.02. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 16.59, or 1.5 percent, to 1,095.34, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 43.67, or 2 percent, to 2,242.03. Only 376 stocks fell on the New York Stock Exchange while 2,669 rose. Volume came to 1.13 billion shares. said the results from Alcoa and CSX results lifted the market because they hit on the two themes that traders are looking for in earnings: revenue growth and opti- mistic outlooks. ‘‘That’s why the earn- ings were so good,’’ Ingar- ra said. ‘‘You saw that top- line growth and good guid- ance.’’ Intel’s report followed that pattern. During the recession, companies that made money often did so by cut- ting costs rather than bring- ing in sales. So sales growth is a sign that busi- ness is indeed picking up. Alcoa rose 13 cents to $11. CSX fell 74 cents to $51.72 after rising earlier in the day. Intel shares rose 44 cents to $21.01 but rose to $22.15 in after-hours trading. Bond prices dipped as investors taking more chances on stocks retreated from the safety of govern- ment debt. The yield on the 10-year note rose to 3.12 percent from 3.07 percent late Monday. Its yield helps set interest rates on con- sumer loans and mort- gages. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 21.21, or 3.4 percent, to 642.82.

