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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Positive Reports Push Stock Prices Higher

From Staff

Stocks rose for a third straight session Monday as corporate mergers and bargain prices lured investors back to a market that is again inching toward record heights.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 109.54 points.

Broader stock indicators also closed higher. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 6.77 to 1,334.52, and the Nasdaq composite rose 45.87 to 2,524.21 as technology leaders and upstart Internet companies had solid gains.

A number of Dow stocks benefited from positive recommendations from Wall Street analysts. American Express rose 2-3/4 to 128 after Prudential Securities raised its rating on the stock, citing rising credit card use in the United States and overseas.

IBM, which saw its price slump last month, rose 4-1/2 to 120-1/2 after a J.P. Morgan analyst said IBM’s stock could reach 150 within 12 months. The analyst said strong sales of IBM’s electronic business software are helping its bottom line.