Andrew Burton/Getty Images By BERNARD CONDONNEW YORK -- Stocks ended mostly higher on Friday as major indexes extended gains for a fourth week in a row, a rare stretch for this year.
After flitting between tiny gains and losses for most of the day, the Standard & Poor's 500 index (^GPSC) r! ose just two-hundredths of one percent to close at a record high. The Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI) ended slightly lower, but the losses were limited by a gain in energy shares, which have been falling sharply in recent months as oil prices drop.
As of Friday, the S&P 500 is up 10 percent so far this year.
"The market has continued to surprise me with its strength," said Uri Landesman, president of Platinum Partners, an investment fund in New York. "It's been almost a six-year party ... and it takes a lot to upset that momentum."
The S&P 500 rose 0.49 points to 2,039.82. The Dow slipped 18.05 points, or 0.1 percent, to 17,634.74. The Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) rose 8.4 points, or 0.2 percent, to 4,688.54.Stocks have been mostly rising since Oct. 15, when the S&P 500 nearly fell into a "correction," a trading term for a drop of 10 percent or more from a recent peak. Generally strong corporate earnings results an! d solid U.S. economic data have lifted shares sharply since th! en.
On Friday, investors got more good economic news. The Commerce Department reported that retail sales rose 0.3 percent in October after a drop in September. The reversal, though modest, was interpreted by some market experts as evidence that recent job gains and lower gas prices are lifting spirits as the holiday shopping season begins.
"American consumers are starting to spend again," said John Manley, chief stock strategist at Wells Fargo Funds, which manages $250 billion. "More people are working ... and that makes us a little freer at the cash registers."
Six of the S&P 500 index's 10 industry sectors rose for day, led by an 0.8 percent gain in energy shares. Energy stocks had fallen 10 percent in three months as the price of crude plummeted to a four-year low.
Among the highlights of the day, Virgin America, an airline backed by billionaire Richard Branson, soared 30 percent in its initial public offering.
For the week, the S&P 500 and ! the Dow closed up about a third of percentage point, their fourth week of gains. The only better performance this year was a five-week run started in early August.
Among stocks making moves:
- Nordstrom (JWN) rose 92 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $74.17 after the high-end retailer reported earnings that topped financial analysts' expectations.
- Hertz Global Holdings (HTZ) sank 5 percent after announcing it needs to restate its financial results for 2012 and 2013. The car-rental company fell $1.04 to $21.69.
The price of oil posted its biggest gain in two months on concerns over Libyan output and strong retail sales in the U.S. that raised expectations for demand. Benchmark U.S. crude rose $1.61 to close at $75.82 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils used by many U.S. refineries, rose $1.92 to $79.41 on the ICE Futures exchange in London.In other energy futures trading on the NYMEX:
- Wholesale gasoline rose 4.1 cents to close at $2.043 a gallon.
- Heating oil rose 5.4 cents to close at $2.416 a gallon.
- Natural gas rose 4.3 cents to close at $4.022 per 1,000 cubic feet.
The price of U.S. government bonds rose slightly. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note slipped to 2.32 percent from 2.34 percent on Thursday. The yield was at 3 percent at the start of the year. Yields move in the opposite direction to the price.The price of gold rose $24.10, or 2.1 percent, to $1,185.60 an ounce. Silver rose 69 cents, or 4.4 percent, to $16.31 an ounce and copper rose five cents, or 1.7 percent, to $3.05 a pound.
What to watch Monday:
- The Federal Reserve releases industrial production for October at 9:15 a.m. Eastern time.
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Turn down the thermostat. Who doesn't know that? Throw on a sweater, dress in layers and keep your head and feet warm to make you even more comfortable. In fact, you'll sleep better if those popsicle toes are kept toasty, according to recent sleep research. Try a tip from the Brits and use a hot water bottle or heating pad to warm the bed down by the foot before you retire. Electric blankets are another way to keep warm.
1. Killing it old school -
Most utility companies offer free or low-cost energy audits. As my utility put it when it scheduled mine, "It's free. You paid for it." Most are subsidized by a monthly charge on all customers' bills. I came away with a dozen compact fluorescent bulbs, a low-flow shower head, faucet aerators, a surge protector strip and some practical suggestions on what my bill should look like and how I could get it down. Most interesting I discovered from my energy audit that a gas fireplace or wood stove is cheaper to run than to raise the thermostat to heat the whole house.
2. Recruit an expert -
Take a page from the WWII playbook and try blackout curtains. They insulate, and they muffle street noise and keep a room darker for sleeping. You buy them at most department stores' home sections or make your own. Lined curtains, extra layers of drapes or even blankets will keep out the cold.
3. Kill it with softness -
Easy do-it-yourself projects include weatherstripping, window caulking and attaching plastic sheeting on windows and glass doors. For the last (a personal favorite), use-two sided tape and and a blow dryer to pull it taut. It takes me on average a half hour to do a window and less once the ladder is already up. Another very inexpensive fix for exterior drafts is to insulate behind electrical outlets on exterior walls with small foam cutouts or rubber gaskets. This only takes minutes to install.
4. Recon to the hardware store -
The newest smart thermostats allow you to program away from home on your smartphone, but very affordable models also allow you to set it and forget it, turning down the heat when you are asleep or away. Some utility companies offer rebates on smart thermostats, and some like ConEd (ED) offer free smart thermostats to customers. According to energy.gov, every one degree lower can reduce your heating bill by 1 percent and using a programmable thermostat year round can cut heating and cooling costs by 10 percent.
5. Pony up for a programmable thermostat -
Another Old Farmer's Almanac tip is that running a humidifier will allow you to feel more comfortable at lower temperatures. It will also help your complexion. Just be careful the moisture level isn't too high or mold and mildew could create a worse problem than dry skin or high heating bills.
6. Hydrate your home -
According to energy.gov, the worst offenders draining your power and wallet are computers, TV set-top boxes, DVD players, electronic charging units, gaming consoles and kitchen appliances. These phantom loads cost the average American household $100 a year. Turning these off with a convenient surge protector strip can drastically drop a bill. Replacing just 13 incandescent light bulbs with more energy efficient CFL or LED bulbs can save $50 annually. Pacific Gas & Electric (PCG) helpfully suggests that if a device's plug adapter runs warm to the touch or has a continuously running light or display, it is probably an energy vampire.
7. Slay those energy vampires -
Turn off the lights when you leave the room. Close the flue in the fireplace once the fire is entirely out. Change your furnace filters once a month. Shorten your hot showers. This latter tip saves both water and energy -- especially if you turn your hot water heater down to around 120 degrees.
8. Channel your mother -
Open your drapes when the sun is shining into a room -- especially south-facing windows. Just imagine where a cat would lay to soak up the warmth and open the curtains to let Old Sol do its job. Close curtains when the sun has moved on. Outside your home, use solar-powered light fixtures where possible.
9. Enlist the sun -
Some ceiling fans can be reversed to draw hot air down and keep you warmer. Check the owner's manual (available online if you've misplaced it) to see if yours has this option. Use rolled up towels or draft-dodgers at the bottoms of doors. If you bake or roast in the winter, leave the oven door ajar to warm the kitchen and shut the door once the oven cools down. Finally, if push comes to shove, most utility companies offer budget billing solutions and heat assistance for senior citizens and lower-income customers.
10. Think outside the box - More from Annalisa Kraft-Linder:
Source : http://www.dailyfinance.com/2014/11/14/market-wrap-stocks-end-mostly-higher-market-extends-gains/
