By Kate Gibson, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks mostly rose on Monday,
lifting the S&P 500 to within reach of its record, as Wall
Street celebrated Larry Summers taking his name out of the running
to head the Federal Reserve.
"Summers had been a critic of quantitative easing, and global
markets are thrilled he will not be in charge of taking away their
'fix' too quickly," wrote Nick Raich, chief executive officer at
the Earnings Scout, in emailed commentary.
Equities were also bolstered by a weekend agreement between the
U.S. and Russia on a plan to get rid of Syria's chemical
weapons.
"After the initial shock of the Summers announcement begins to
wear off, we expect the stock market to consolidate recent gains,
as it digests Fed news and waits to see how developments in Syria
progress," noted Fred Dickson, chief investment strategist at
Davidson Companies.
The S&P 500 index (SPX) was 10.99 points from its record of
1,709.67 hit on Aug. 2, as it traded up 10.69 points, or 0.6%, at
1,698.68. Materials paced gains among its 10 major sectors, only
one of which -- technology -- was in negative turf.
While the S&P 500 on Monday flirted with its first close
above 1,700 in six weeks, a Citi Research analyst said he sees the
index climbing to 1,900 by the end of 2014.
Shares of Packaging Corp. of America (PKG) leapt 8.8% after the
maker of corrugated shipping boxes said it would acquire Boise
Inc.(BZ) for about $1.27 billion. Boise rallied 26%.
Apple Inc. (AAPL) fell 3.4%, making the consumer technology
company the top decliner on the S&P 500, and adding to losses
that have had its shares knocked four out of five sessions since
the introduction of a lower-cost iPhone.
Allegheny Technologies Inc.'s (ATI) shares rose 8.7% after the
metal processor agreed to sell its tungsten materials unit to
Kennametal Inc. (KMT) for $605 million.
After a 174-point rise, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI)
was lately up 133.81 points, or 0.9%, to 15,510.03.
After hitting a 13-year high of 3,756.24, the Nasdaq Composite
(RIXF) was lately down 1.75 points, or 0.1%, at 3,720.43.
For every stock falling, more than two rose on the New York
Stock Exchange, where almost 403 million shares traded by 3:15 p.m.
Eastern. Composite volume surpassed 2.3 billion.
The dollar (DXY) declined against the currencies of major U.S.
trading partners and the yield on the 10-year Treasury note
(10_YEAR) dropped 2 basis points to 2.871%.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, oil futures (CLV3) fell
$1.62, or 1.5%, to $106.59 a barrel, a three-week low.
The price of gold (GCZ3) rose $9.20, or 0.7%, to $1,317.80 an
ounce, settling higher for the first session in five.
The exit by Summers, a former Treasury secretary and economic
adviser to President Barack Obama, came as some Democrats on the
Senate Banking Committee voiced opposition to his nomination, which
had not been announced.
His exit comes just ahead of a two-day Fed meeting that begins
Tuesday, with the central bank expected to start cutting its $85
billion in monthly bond purchases, which are otherwise known as
quantitative easing. That stimulus has helped the S&P 500 surge
more than 150% from its March 2009 low.
A critic of quantitative easing, Summers was viewed as more
likely to tighten monetary policy than Janet Yellen, the current
Fed vice chair now considered the most likely person to replace Ben
Bernanke as Fed chief.
Monday's economic reports included manufacturing in the New York
region expanding less than expected this month, despite a pickup in
orders and shipments.
The Federal Reserve said industrial production climbed in
August.
On Friday, Wall Street knocked out a second week of gains as
worries about Syria ebbed and as investors looked to this week's
monetary-policy decision by the Fed.
On Monday, a United Nations report found "convincing evidence"
that poison sarin gas was used in an Aug. 21 attack that killed
more than 1,400 people near the Syrian capital of Damascus.
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires