Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa

Apple results lift Wall Street share prices

Updated at 10:09 am on 24 April 2009

US stocks rose in volatile trade on Thursday as better-than-expected results from several regional banks lifted financial shares.

Earnings from big US regional banks, including PNC Financial Services Group and Fifth Third Bancorp, provided glimmers of hope for a sector damaged by climbing loan losses as the recession lingers.

Solid results from companies such as Apple Inc also appeased investors. Apple shares rose 3.2% to $US125.40 on strong sales of iPhones and iPods.

In contrast, United Parcel Service Inc slid 2.6%to $US53.33 after it said profits were hurt by the economic downturn and forecast second-quarter results below expectations.

And US government data showed existing homes sales fell in March to a much lower-than-expected annual rate, while weekly initial jobless claims rose slightly more than expected.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 70.49 points, or 0.89%, to 7,957.06.

The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 8.37 points, or 0.99%, to 851.92.

The Nasdaq Composite Index added 6.09 points, or 0.37%, to 1,652.21.

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