US Stocks Up; DJIA Has Best 4-Week Streak Since 1933

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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks rose Friday and the Dow Jones Industrial Average capped its best four-week winning streak since 1933 as investors continued betting on an economic rebound, despite grim jobs data.
The unemployment rate in March climbed to 8.5%, the highest since 1983. Yet markets continued to act as if an economic recovery was in the works, hoping the combination of International Monetary Fund lending, economic stimulus spending and bank-stabilization plans would finally reignite growth.
On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 39.51 points, or 0.5%, to 8017.59, its highest close since Feb. 9, bringing its advance to 3.1% on the week. That was the fourth straight week of gains, and at 21%, the biggest advance for this kind of four-week streak since May 1933. The broad Standard & Poor's 500 index added 8.12, or 0.97%, to 842.5. For the week, the S&P 500 added 3.3%, and has cut its losses on 2009 to 6.7%. The Nasdaq Composite added 19.24, or 1.2%, to 1621.87, and is now up 2.8% for the year to date.
Traders are encouraged that the Nasdaq is leading this rally because it signals an appetite for risk in the form of growth-oriented technology stocks with a high degree of correlation to the economy.
Emblematic of that trend, Research In Motion (Nasdaq) rose 10.20, or 21%, to 59.29 and it gained 32% on the week. The smartphone maker said demand was building for its BlackBerry among consumers and businesses.

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