MARKET REPORT

Dow creeps up as Syria risk falls

Investors appeared to decide the risk of a conflict with Syria is shrinking and sent stock prices higher Wednesday.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 135.54 points, or 0.9 percent, to 15,326.60 on Wednesday. A big decline in Apple and other technology companies held back the Standard & Poor’s 500 index and the Nasdaq composite. The S&P 500 managed a small gain, its seventh in a row.

U.S. and Russian diplomats are working on a plan that would lead Syria to surrender chemical weapons that President Barack Obama said were used against civilians. Obama said the U.S. will explore a possible diplomatic solution, though the U.S. military remains ready to attack.

After a tough August, stocks have been rising in September. The S&P 500 is up 3.4 percent so far this month. Since September began, a U.S. strike on Syria has gone from seeming imminent to something that may not happen.

The risk that a confrontation with Syria could spread means most investors would be happier if the U.S. didn’t act, said Cam Albright, director of asset allocation at Wilmington Trust Investment Advisors. “Markets are much more happy when they don’t have to deal with that particular risk,” he said.

The S&P 500 edged up 5.14 points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,689.13. The Nasdaq composite fell 4.01 points, or 0.1 percent, to 3,725.01.

More stocks rose than fell on the New York Stock Exchange. Consolidated volume was average at 3 billion shares.

Disappointment over Apple’s new iPhone lineup dragged down tech stocks. The two S&P 500 stocks with the biggest declines were Apple and the chip-supplier Qualcomm, which makes the radio chip used in previous iPhones and is expected to make the chip used in the new iPhones.

Apple’s new iPhones struck many as only a modest advance from previous models.

There was a broad expectation that Apple would make deeper cuts to iPhone prices and go for bigger market share, said Wayne Lam, an analyst for IHS iSuppli, which tracks components used in electronics. Instead, it stuck with its business model of avoiding cheap versions of its products.

“It’s a proven business model, and good for them, but I think the expectation is that Apple is losing market share and they’re not innovating,”he said.

Utilities and tech were the only two industry sectors in the S&P 500 that fell. The other eight rose, led by energy stocks.

Restoration Hardware shares fell $9.02, or 11.9 percent, to $67.04 after reporting second-quarter sales that were not as strong as in the first quarter.

Oil prices rose 17 cents to close at $107.56 after two days of declines. Gold fell 20 cents to $1,363.80.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.92 percent from 2.97 percent a day earlier.

The dollar weakened slightly to 1.33 euro and 99.86 Japanese yen.

Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange observed a moment of silence shortly before trading began on the 12th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Business, Pages 24 on 09/12/2013

Upcoming Events