- Title: USA: Rally drives S&P 500 to highest close since May 3
- Date: 27th July 2012
- Summary: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (JULY 27, 2012) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF NASDAQ
- Embargoed: 11th August 2012 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Usa
- Country: USA
- Topics: Business,Communications,Finance
- Reuters ID: LVA72Q4QI73VOEJ7C095RKTLJIQ3
- Story Text: U.S. stocks surged on Friday (July 27), driving the S&P 500 to its highest close since May 3 as hopes increased that the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank may provide further stimulus.
Taken together, the S&P 500's two-day move was its biggest since December, driven by optimism that central banks will ride to the rescue with more aid for the world economy. The S&P 500 rose 3.6 percent in those two days, and the moves come before key meetings of both the Fed and the ECB next week.
The Dow ended above 13,000 for the first time since May 7.
The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 187.73 points, or 1.46 percent, to 13,075.66 at the close. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index advanced 25.95 points, or 1.91 percent, to finish at 1,385.97. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 64.84 points, or 2.24 percent, to end at 2,958.09.
Stocks posted strong gains for the week, with the S&P 500 putting in its third straight week of increases. For the week, the Dow was up 2 percent, the S&P 500 was up 1.7 percent and the Nasdaq was up 1.1 percent.
Facebook Inc shares tumbled to an all-time low of $22.28 (USD) a day after the social media company reported a drastic slowdown in revenue growth and failed to offer financial forecasts to quell fears about its ability to boost advertising growth. The stock ended at $23.73, down 11.6 percent. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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