Housing data boosts stocks
US stocks rose for a third day yesterday after upbeat housing data and stronger-than-expected results from companies, including Citrix Systems, overshadowed some high-profile earnings misses.
Pending home sales rose to nearly a two-year high in March, sending the Philadelphia Stock Exchange index of housing-related shares up three per cent. Shares of homebuilder Lennar climbed 5.7 per cent to $27.38. The stock of PulteGroup, No. 2 US homebuilder, soared 10.1 per cent after it reported its biggest jump in new orders in seven years. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 113.90 points, or 0.87 per cent, to 13,204.62 at the close. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index advanced 9.29 points, or 0.67 per cent, to 1,399.98. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 20.98 points, or 0.69 per cent, to 3,050.61