Stocks post modest gains as job losses slow

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NEW YORK | Investors undaunted by a surprisingly weak jobs report found enough positive news to nudge stocks higher Friday.

Investors looking for the bright side figured that the rise in joblessness to 10.2 percent in October meant the Federal Reserve would have to keep interest rates near zero for some time. That tends to weaken demand for the dollar, which in turn gives a boost to stocks.

“We got data today that suggest that interest rates are going to be on hold for a while,” said Max Bublitz, chief strategist at SCM Advisors.

When the dollar is weaker, U.S. goods are cheaper for buyers overseas. Companies that do business overseas also get a profit gain when their earnings are translated back into dollars.

Safe-haven assets like Treasurys were mixed. Gold topped $1,100 an ounce for the first time. Gold benefits when investors are worried about a weak dollar and inflation.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 17.46, or 0.2 percent, to 10,023.42, boosting its gain for the week to 311 points. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 2.67, or 0.3 percent, to 1,069.30, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 7.12, or 0.3 percent, to 2,112.44.

For the week, the Dow Jones industrial average and the S&P were up 3.2 percent, and the Nasdaq was up 3.3 percent.

Posted on Fri, Nov. 06, 2009 11:07 PM

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