By Anora Mahmudova and Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks rallied on Friday,
recovering some of the deep losses of the roller-coaster week,
which had been colored by concerns about global growth and the
spread of Ebola.
The main benchmarks were boosted by upbeat earnings reports from
heavyweights, such as General Electric, Honeywell and Morgan
Stanley.
The S&P 500 (SPX) gained 18 points, or 1%, to 1,881.46, but
was still on track to record a modest weekly loss.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) jumped 153 points, or 1%,
to 16,274.67, but was poised to finish the week lower.
The Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) rose 47 points, or 1.1%, to 4,263.97
and was on track to finish the week roughly where it started
it..
The sharp gains came after a choppy session on Wall Street on
Thursday, when the benchmarks fell around 1% at the open. However,
they recovered throughout the day, helped by comments from
President of the St. Louis Federal Reserve James Bullard, who
raised the possibility of extending bond purchases. Bullard isn't a
voting member this year of the rate-setting Federal Open Market
Committee.
Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren told CNBC on Friday he does
not expect the U.S. economy to need another round of quantitative
easing, but added that he would not rule out that possibility.
Earnings: Several heavyweights reported results ahead of the
opening bell. General Electric Co. (GE) shares rose 3.6% after
third-quarter earnings topped market expectations.
Defense contractor Honeywell International Inc. (HON) lifted its
low end of its 2014 per-share outlook, after third-quarter earnings
beat expectations, sending the shares 3.8% higher.
Morgan Stanley (MS) gained 3.6% after the bank reported
third-quarter earnings that topped forecasts.
Another bank, Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (BK) said
third-quarter profit climbed 11%.
Movers and shakers: Urban Outfitters Inc. (URBN) slid 14% after
the retailer late Thursday warned weaker sales trends first
reported in September are continuing.
Google Inc. (GOOGL) (GOOG) shares fell 0.9% after the Internet
giant late Thursday reported third-quarter below forecasts. Revenue
rose to $16.52 billion from $13.75 billion.
SanDisk Corp. (SNDK) slumped 2.6%, after the memory-chip maker
on Thursday reported a drop in profit.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) was off 0.4%. The chip maker
on Thursday reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of 3 cents a
share, below the 4 cents a share forecast by analysts. AMD also
announced it will cut 7% of its global workforce by the end of the
fourth quarter.
Fed speakers: Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen said
Friday, in a speech on Friday said the recent sustained rise in
inequality in the U.S. is of great concern. Yellen did not attempt
to answer the "difficult questions" of how to promote equal
opportunity.
Data:Construction started on new U.S. homes rose 6.3% in
September, bouncing up after a sizable August drop, led by growth
for volatile apartment building, according to government data
released Friday.
Also Friday, markets will get a fresh reading on consumer
sentiment, which will be released at 9:55 a.m.
Other markets: European markets rebounded after the recent
market slide, with the Stoxx Europe 600 index up for the first time
in nine sessions.
Asian stocks closed mixed, with Japan's Nikkei 225 down
1.4%.
Oil markets took a breather on Friday after crude futures
touched below $80 a barrel for the first time since June 2012 on
Thursday. Metals were mixed, while the dollar fell against most
major currencies.
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