Dow Average Sets Record as U.S. Stocks Rally on Oil's Decline
By Hilary Johnson
Oct. 3 (Bloomberg) -- The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose to a record, eclipsing its 2000 high, as a two-month descent in oil prices accelerated and improved the outlook for consumer spending.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer; Boeing Co., the world's second-biggest maker of commercial aircraft; and United Technologies Corp., the maker of Otis elevators and Carrier air conditioners, led the Dow to a close of 11,727.34.
Stocks started rallying after crude oil fell below $59 a barrel for the first time since February. The 30-stock average surpassed its closing high for the fourth consecutive day and withstood a late retreat to set the record.
The Dow climbed 56.99, or 0.5 percent, in exceeding its peak of 11,722.98 on Jan. 14, 2000. The record followed the best third quarter since 1995 for the average, which includes many of the biggest U.S. companies by market value, as the Federal Reserve stopped raising interest rates.
