Stocks Gain As Consumers Confidence Rises

Stock Markets in the United States end on a positive note in trade today. The Dow was higher by 30 points while the S&P had a mild gain of 2.43 points and the Nasdaq was up by 6.25 points. The conglomerates and financial sectors were up strongly, by 1.4 percent and 1.0 percent respectively. The energy sector took a hit today; falling 0.78 percent after the price of crude oil fell by $2.52. Bank of America rose 2.31 percent while Siemens increased 4.58 percent.
The Conference Board released their confidence index today for the United States which showed that consumers are becoming less worried about the economy and labor market. The index rose from a revised reading of 47.4 to a 54.1, climbing more than forecasted. “Consumers are seeing more reports that the recession is bottoming out,” stated TheLFB-Forex.com Trade Team Members. “The combination of seeing better economic data, house prices beginning to firm up, and the equity markets rising are good for the confidence of the consumer.”
The Dow Jones Index gained 30.01 points (0.32%) to 9,539.29, while the S&P 500 index added 2.43 points (0.24%) to 1028.00