Dow Jones Industrial Average

In the realm of finance, there's no term quite as widely used or as constantly quoted as the Dow . To many, the Dow Jones industrial average--an index of just 30 stocks-- is the market. The stock market--composed of more than 6,700 issues--is the Dow. And the Dow has almost mystical qualities as an indicator of health and a forecaster of economic and political news.

The specter of anemic corporate earnings has put a temporary halt to the stock market's summer winning streak. The Dow Jones industrial average fell for a third consecutive day Wednesday as investors faced the prospect that quarterly profits may decline for the first time since 2009. The Dow slipped nearly 129 points, its second straight triple-digit setback, after Alcoa Inc. warned that weakened growth in China has cut into demand for aluminum. That renewed concerns that economic troubles in Asia and Europe could slice into profits of U.S. companies this year and next.

The nation's unemployment rate inched up to 5.2% in September as the number of payroll jobs fell sharply, especially in the manufacturing sector, the Labor Department reported Friday. The report shows that the economy, which expanded its output of goods and services at an annual rate of 4.7% in the second quarter of 1996, has cooled appreciably.

The stock market finished its best week of the year, but the mood on Wall Street was subdued as investors braced for potentially major developments in Europe beginning Monday. Major stock indexes extended an unexpected four-day winning streak with modest gains Friday. The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than 93 points, notching a 3.6% weekly gain that reversed a 9% decline over the previous month. The blue chip index is now up 2.7% since Jan. 1 after sagging into negative territory for the year last week.

The stock market soared Wednesday after an unexpectedly weak reading on factory orders fueled hopes that the Federal Reserve Board will not raise interest rates soon. The Dow Jones industrial average reached a five-month high, advancing 70.90 points, or 1.88%, to 3,846.73. That was the highest level since March 23, when the closely watched index closed at 3,869.46. It was also the biggest one-day gain since April 5, when the Dow rose 82.06 points, or 2.2%, to 3,675.41.

Like the birth of a baby or the end of communism, the Dow Jones industrial average's first close over 3,000 ought to be a moment to savor. It's a milestone, any way you slice it. Wall Street, of course, will downplay this, as it usually does. "There's not a lot ofeuphoria here, as you might think there'd be," admits Larry Greenwald, trader at brokerage Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. in New York.

A nervous calm pervaded world stock and commodities markets on Tuesday and in early trading today as investors worried that the financial fallout from events in the Soviet Union is far from over. Tuesday's muted market action resembled the stillness in the eye of a hurricane. Neither the length of the lull--nor the direction that markets will take once traders start to move them again--can be predicted, they said. U.S.

On Wall Street, 1991 was neither the best of years nor the worst of years, but it was, perhaps, one of the weirdest of years. It featured a stock market that was buoyed by the Persian Gulf War, battered by a sudden plunge, and then defied gravity at year's end to close at a record high of 3,168.83. "It's levitating," said Garfield L. Logan of Optivest, a Newport Beach investment counselor, who sees the market heading into the high-risk zone in 1992.

Small came up short in this year's first quarter. Prices of the local area's stocks, which mostly represent relatively small companies, posted a modest gain in the three months ended March 31 to trail several broader measures of the stock market. It was a pause for the small local issues after two straight years of sharp gains. But the region's showing was in step with the general trend in small-capitalization stocks, which also slowed from their sterling performance of the past two years.

It might be safe to look at your 401(k) statement again. The Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor's 500 index closed out their best first quarter since 1998. The run-up has sent nearly $1.85 trillion streaming back into stocks since January. The broad S&P 500 rocketed 12% higher during the quarter while the blue-chip Dow surged 8.14%. Technology stocks were even hotter: The Nasdaq composite gained nearly 19% in its strongest launch since 1991. Investors piled into the market amid signs the economic picture is brightening with solid job gains and improving consumer confidence.

The Dow Jones industrial average is making another run at closing above 13,000, a milestone that has not been reached since the start of the financial crisis four years ago. America's most-watched stock indicator popped above and below the level six times in the first few hours of trading Friday. The blue-chip index was most recently up 26.37 points, or 0.2%, at 13,010.08. The Dow is now up nearly 6.5% so far this year and has gained more than 1,000 points along the way. Broader stock indexes have also been on a blistering pace.

U.S. stocks rallied amid more evidence of a U.S. economic recovery and hopes of a new Greek bailout, sending the Dow Jones industrial average to one of its best days this year. The Dow rose to within 100 points of the psychologically important mark of 13,000, a level last reached in May 2008. Economic data released Thursday showed that the number of people filing for unemployment claims fell last week, while the number of homes under construction rose. The reports helped paint a more upbeat picture about the economy that put Wall Street in a buying mood.

Another morning of rising stock prices, another day of debating whether the recent stock rally has gone too far. Stocks have started the week on an up note thanks to the Greek Parliament's decision to move forward with a plan that will cut more from the budget in order to win the country more aid from the international community. The benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 index is up 0.6% or 7.23 points to 1,349.94 this morning. The rise comes after U.S. markets experienced their worst day of the year to close out last week.

Stocks rocketed to their strongest week in more than two years, and that's left many on Wall Street optimistic about a year-end rally. Investors pumped $1.1 trillion into U.S. stocks in the last week and brought the Dow Jones industrial average solidly into the black for the year, sharply rebounding from what had been a rocky November for global financial markets. Meanwhile, the Standard & Poor's 500 index and the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite are within striking distance of turning positive this year.

The stock market is beginning what is often its best two-month period of the year. But the bulls lost control on the last day of October. Equities tumbled worldwide on Halloween, denting the month's powerful advance, as worries about Europe's debt crisis flared again and the bankruptcy of brokerage MF Global Holdings Inc. rattled Wall Street. The dollar jumped as some investors sought the usual havens, and as Japan intervened in currency markets to try to beat back the yen from all-time highs.

What was the best-performing stock in the Dow Jones industrial average during the first quarter of 1999, and what was the worst? Answer appears Friday.

Major U.S. stock indexes on Friday broke out of the trading range where they've been stuck for two months, as a surprisingly strong retail sales report and gangbuster earnings from Google Inc. helped fuel a broad rally. The Dow Jones industrial average and the Nasdaq composite index turned positive for 2011, with both indexes now up 0.6% year to date. The Dow gained 166.36 points, or 1.4%, to 11,644.49, its highest close since Aug. 3, when the market was in the midst of a terrifying plunge driven by Europe's deepening debt crisis and fear of another global recession.

The strain of deteriorating economic conditions and the failure of governments to contain the damage are raising fears that a new financial market meltdown may be unavoidable. The grim mood was evident worldwide as a cascade of selling in stocks and commodities was triggered by concerns that policymakers lack the firepower and political consensus to revive their faltering economies. The Federal Reserve's latest move to push interest rates lower failed to assuage investors, who appear to be giving in to anxieties about a double-dip recession.