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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Stocks Climb In Sluggish Trading

Associated Press

Stocks rose on Thursday, but trading was sluggish as investors remained divided about whether interest rates are headed higher.

The Dow Jones industrial average posted single-digit gains for most of the session, then climbed higher in the last hour of trading. The Dow ended 23.21 higher at 3,870.77.

Traders said the increases in the Dow and other broad market indicators lacked conviction. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by about a slim 7 to 5 margin on the New York Stock Exchange. Big Board volume totaled 322.03 million shares as of 4 p.m., down from 395.31 million Wednesday.

“The market has given a very good accounting of itself,” said John Burnett, a stock trader at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Securities, “but one gets the feeling that one’s being set up for something.”

Overseas stock markets were mostly lower. The Nikkei index in Tokyo fell 0.7 percent. In Frankfurt, the DAX lost 0.2 percent. But in London, the FT-SE index was up 0.58 percent.

Some of the stocks that moved substantially or traded heavily Thursday:

NYSE

Boeing rose 3/8 to 46 1/4.

The aircraft maker said it will cut up to 7,000 jobs, citing cutbacks in production of its 737 and 767 model jetliners and a weak marketplace.

Dayton Hudson rose 1 7/8 to 72 1/8.

January sales at stores open at least a year rose 5 percent, while total sales rose 11.1 percent.

ITT Corp. rose 3 1/2 to 92 1/2.

Fourth-quarter net earnings rose to $2.69 per share from $1.77 a year ago.

Scott Paper rose 3 1/8 to 73 3/4.

Dean Witter upgraded the stock to “buy” from “accumulate.” The company said Tuesday that its fourthquarter income from continuing operations was $1.76 per share, compared with a loss a year earlier of $4.07.

NASDAQ

Auspex Systems rose 7/8 to 9 1/8.

Morgan Stanley upgraded the issues of the company, which makes client/server computer systems, to “outperform” from “neutral.”

QVC Inc. rose 15-16 to 45 1/2.

The home shopping network will boost its stake in British Sky Broadcasting Group to 80 percent from 50 percent.

AMEX

Thermo Cardio rose 1 1/4 to 21 1/8.

The company said Wednesday it had received approval in Europe for its HeartPak pneumatic heart valve.