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Blue-Chip Issues Bet On Interest Rates

Associated Press

Blue-chip stocks marched to record highs on Wednesday amid mounting optimism that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates, but some issues in the broader market lagged.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 30.08 points to 4,615.23, closing for the first time above 4,600.

Advancing issues led decliners on the Big Board by about 4 to 3. Volume was moderately heavy at 357.82 million shares, up sharply from Monday’s 117.14 million shares. The market was closed on Tuesday for Independence Day.

The best gains were concentrated in blue-chip issues, but most broad market indexes rose as well.

All eyes were on a two-day Fed policy meeting that convened on Wednesday, in which central bankers debated whether to lower interest rates to spur the economy, or to leave them unchanged.

Overseas stocks were mixed. In Tokyo, the Nikkei index gained 0.5 percent. In London, the FT-SE 100 rose 1.36 percent.

Some of the stocks that moved substantially or traded heavily:

NYSE

Telefonos de Mexico’s American depositary receipts rose 1 to 30 3/8.

The stock was upgraded to “buy” from “trading buy” by the brokerage firm of Murphey, Marseilles, Smith & Nammack.

Motorola rose 1/2 to 69.

Nextel’s bondholders approved changes in a company credit agreement that, among other things, allow Nextel to license technology from Motorola.

Boeing rose 1 1/2 to 63 1/8.

The stock was recovering from a drop last week and Monday after the company said it would cut production of certain jets.

Chrysler rose 1/2 to 49.

The Number 3 automaker said its June car sales rose 21 percent, while truck sales climbed 8 percent, the best monthly figures in its history.

NASDAQ

Nextel rose 2 1/2 to 17 5/8.

OneComm rose 1 3/8 to 18 1/2.

The companies’ bondholders approved changes in a debt agreement that allow Nextel to merge with Dial Page and OneComm, and to license technology from Motorola.

Work Recovery fell 1-16 to 7 13-16.

The company’s shares began trading in the Nasdaq system. The company provides rehabilitation technology.

Cisco Systems rose 1 23-32 to 52 3-32.

Stryker Corp. rose 2 1/8 to 40 1/8.

These stocks, along with Nextel and several NYSE issues, were named to Smith Barney’s “Ten-Plus Exceptional Names,” a portfolio of 15 stocks considered by the firm to be particularly attractive.