* Retail, consumer sentiment data suggest spending recovery
* National Semiconductor weighs on tech shares
* Dow closes up 0.6 pct, S&P up 0.4 pct, Nasdaq flat
* For up-to-the-minute market news, click []
(Adds dollar in paragraph 5; adds volume in last two
paragraphs)
By Angela Moon
NEW YORK, Dec 11 (Reuters) - The Dow and S&P 500 closed up
for a third straight session on Friday after several solid
consumer-related reports reinforced investors' confidence in a
steady recovery by the economy.
Government reports showing stronger-than-expected November
retail sales and an unexpected rise in business inventories in
October pointed to a recovery in consumer spending. A private
survey also showed consumer sentiment improved in early
December, lifting the S&P Retail index <.RLX> by 1.3 percent.
For details, see [].
"Today is a repeat of prior days, with economic data
showing recession is bottoming out and recovery is here," said
Rick Lake, portfolio manager of the Aston/Lake Partners LASSO
Alternatives Fund in Greenwich, Connecticut.
The Dow Jones industrial average <> was up 65.67
points, or 0.63 percent, at 10,471.50. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> was up 4.06 points, or 0.37 percent, at
1,106.41. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> was down 0.55
point, or 0.03 percent, at 2,190.31.
The day's gains came even as the dollar strengthened,
suggesting an inverse correlation between equities and the
greenback may be fading. The inverse correlation had partly
reflected carry trades whereby investors borrow a currency
cheaply in order to invest in higher-yielding assets.
For the week, the Dow was up 0.8 percent, the S&P was near
flat and the Nasdaq shed 0.2 percent.
The U.S. House of Representatives approved a bill aimed at
safeguarding the financial system and warding off future
crises. Bank of America <BAC.N> closed up 2.8 percent at $15.63
as one of the top gainers on the Dow.
Mining stocks also advanced after JPMorgan lifted its price
target on five companies in the sector, including Alcoa Inc
<AA.N> and Freeport McMoRan <FCX.N>. []
Alcoa shares surged 8.2 percent to $14.61.
But National Semiconductor <NSM.N> fell 3.6 percent to
$14.73, pressuring the tech sector, a day after the company
posted results that prompted concerns about its ability to
regain market share.
The Philadelphia semiconductor index <.SOXX> fell 1.0
percent. []
An index of airline stocks <.XAL> advanced 6.3 percent, its
largest move up since May 4, after executives at several
carriers pointed to improved outlooks in 2010. []
Delta Air Lines <DAL.N> was up 13.9 percent at $11.25 and
US Airways <LCC.N> rose 10.5 percent to close at $4.83.
United Technologies Corp <UTX.N> gained 2.2 percent at
$69.40 and provided the Dow's biggest lift after the company
said it expects profits to rise about 10 percent in 2010 on
cost cuts. [].
Volume was light on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1.02
billion shares changing hands, below last year's estimated
daily average of 1.49 billion, while on the Nasdaq, about 1.77
billion shares traded, also below last year's daily average of
2.28 billion.
Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by
a ratio of 2 to 1, while on the Nasdaq, about 15 stocks rose
for every 10 that fell.
(Editing by Kenneth Barry)
