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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (459628)	9/16/2003 12:24:10 PM
From: Hope Praytochange	Respond to of 769667

Stocks Up With Jobs and Price Data; Fed Seen Steady By REUTERS Filed at 11:52 a.m. ET NEW YORK, Sept 16 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose in light trading on Tuesday as investors welcomed broadly positive data on inflation and jobs while they waited for the Federal Reserve's latest comments on the economy. Early on Tuesday, the government said inflation was running just below investors' expectations, while a survey by staffing company Manpower Inc. showed more U.S. companies plan to hire staff in the fourth quarter than in the previous three months. Given the long period of low inflation, investors are expecting the Fed's Open Market Committee to leave interest rates unchanged when it reports on its latest meeting at 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT). The upbeat data about hiring, which is only a limited snapshot of employment trends in the United States, was a chink of light in an otherwise gloomy jobs picture. "This is the linchpin of the more bullish story," said Chris Wolfe, head of equities at J.P. Morgan's private bank. "Once we get confirmation of it, you will see investors up their risk appetite (for stocks) even from these levels." The Dow Jones industrial average was up 46.67 points, or 0.49 percent, at 9,495.48. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 6.26 points, or 0.62 percent, at 1,021.07. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index was up 17.27 points, or 0.94 percent, at 1,862.97. The government set the ball rolling with data showing inflation was at its lowest level for 37 years. It said the overall Consumer Price Index rose 0.3 percent in August, and the so-called core CPI, stripping out some volatile product prices, inched up just 0.1 percent. That was just below economists' expectations. Instinet Research said in its Redbook report, meanwhile, that U.S. chain store sales rose in the latest week as demand strengthened for clothing for the fall season. International Paper led the Dow in gains after Merrill Lynch added the paper company to its Focus One List. Its shares rose $1.03, or 2.6 percent, to $40.84 on the New York Stock Exchange. The Standard & Poor's paper products index was the leading S&P sector, up 2.9 percent. Nortel was the most heavily traded share on the NYSE, rising 28 cents, or 6.8 percent, to $4.42, after a newspaper report in France said the firm was one of three suppliers set to sell high-speed mobile network equipment to French mobile phone company Orange. Nortel declined comment on the report. Shares of No. 1 U.S. defense contractor Lockheed Martin Corp., fell $1.07, or 2 percent, to $49.89, after it said on Monday it agreed to buy defense technology company Titan Corp. for about $1.8 billion. Titan shares jumped $4.36, or 26 percent, to $21.32. Shares of discount brokerage Charles Schwab Corp. rose 54 cents, or 4.7 percent, to $12.02 after its chief financial officer told Reuters the company is likely to meet, and may possibly exceed, third-quarter profit estimates expected by Wall Street analysts.