* Intel results, outlook ignite stock rally
* Fed officials see recession coming to an end -minutes
* U.S. credit card defaults lower than feared
* Dow up 3.1 pct, S&P 500 up 3 pct, Nasdaq up 3.5 pct
* For up-to-the-minute market news click []
(Adds details)
By Leah Schnurr
NEW YORK, July 15 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks jumped on
Wednesday with the S&P 500 racking up its three best days
since March, sparked by results from bellwether Intel Corp
<INTC.O> that lifted hopes for a rebound in technology
spending and improved corporate profitability.
The broad S&P 500 has gained 6.1 percent so far this week
as companies, including Intel and Goldman Sachs Group <GS.N>,
posted much better-than-expected results. It is the biggest
three-day gain since the three major U.S. stock indexes began
a rebound from 12-year lows in early March.
The current earnings season is key as investors look for
evidence to support optimism for an economic recovery.
In a sign that consumers might be faring better than
feared, U.S. credit card companies said defaults and
delinquencies were lower in June than expected. American
Express <AXP.N> forecast better business in the second half of
the year, pushing its stock up 11.3 percent to $27.22. For
details, see []
Optimism was further reinforced by manufacturing data that
suggested the recession is abating, as well as minutes from
the Federal Reserve's most recent policy-setting meeting that
showed officials judged that the U.S. economy's contraction
was slowing. []
But Intel set the tone with earnings that handily beat
forecasts on better-than-expected consumer demand for personal
computers. It also gave a strong outlook and shares of the
world's largest chip maker shot up 7.3 percent to $18.05.
"Intel is the guts of the whole technology industry, so
when they're talking about consumers getting more active on
the PC front, that augurs well for a lot of different things,"
said David Katz, chief investment officer at Matrix Asset
Advisors in New York.
The Dow Jones industrial average <> rose 256.72
points, or 3.07 percent, to 8,616.21. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> gained 26.84 points, or 2.96 percent, to
932.68, its best gain in nearly two months and putting it
solidly back into the black for the year. The Nasdaq Composite
Index <> jumped 63.17 points, or 3.51 percent, to
1,862.90.
JPMORGAN AND IBM SIZZLE
Along with technology shares, the financial sector led the
way higher, with the S&P financial index <.GSPF> climbing 4.1
percent. Hopes that banks will report better-than-anticipated
quarterly results fueled Monday's rally. JPMorgan <JPM.N>,
which releases its scorecard on Thursday, gained 4.5 percent
to $36.26.
Intel's results lifted rival Advanced Micro Devices
<AMD.N> shares, pushing AMD up 8.7 percent to $3.86 on the New
York Stock Exchange, while the PHLX semiconductor index
<.SOXX> jumped 4.4 percent.
Tech will likely continue to be in the spotlight on
Thursday with results expected from bellwethers International
Business Machines <IBM.N> and Google <GOOG.O>. IBM gave the
Dow its biggest boost. IBM's stock climbed 3.9 percent to
$107.22 on the NYSE, while Google's shares gained 3.2 percent
to $438.17 on Nasdaq.
On the economic front, separate reports showed both
industrial output and New York factory activity declined at a
slower pace, while consumer prices edged up moderately. The
New York Federal Reserve Bank's Empire State business index
registered its strongest level since April 2008.
[]
Minutes from last month's FOMC meeting showed central bank
policy-makers thought economic growth would resume in the
second half of the year, although the economy remained
vulnerable.
Volume was moderate on the New York Stock Exchange, with
1.37 billion shares changing hands, below last year's
estimated daily average of 1.49 billion, while on the Nasdaq,
about 2.53 billion shares traded, above last year's daily
average of 2.28 billion.
Advancing stocks far outnumbered declining ones on the
NYSE by a ratio of about 9 to 1, while on the Nasdaq, about
five stocks rose for every one that fell.
