- 18Oct
NEW YORK, Oct 18 (Reuters) - U.S. stock indexes rose slightly on Monday after better-than-expected results from Citigroup and ahead of key earnings in the technology sector.
Citigroup Inc (C.N) shares rose 3 percent, to $4.07, putting a bid under bank shares, after it reported a third consecutive quarterly profit, slightly beating Wall Street's forecasts. For details see [ID:nN18138072].
The KBW bank index .BKX rose 2 percent after dropping 4.5 percent last week.
Investors will continue to focus on financial shares on worries over the potential exposure of major banks to foreclosure losses. [ID:nN11106777].
"Financials have tried to weather the storm from the last couple of days, today helped by Citigroup," said Steve Goldman, market strategist at Weeden & Co in Greenwich, Connecticut.
He said investors are gauging if the foreclosure mess is "really going to affect lending or it is a concentrated issue and not an economic issue."
The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI added 47.08 points, or 0.43 percent, to 11,109.86. The Standard & Poor's 500 .SPX gained 3.40 points, or 0.29 percent, to 1,179.59. The Nasdaq Composite .IXIC rose 3.46 points, or 0.14 percent, to 2,472.23.
Apple Inc (AAPL.O) gained 0.8 percent to $317.15 and IBM Corp (IBM.N) rose 0.9 percent to $142.29. Both companies are expected to report earnings after the close.
Shares of Halliburton Co (HAL.N) fell 5.1 percent to $34 after the world's second-largest oilfield services company reported results. [ID:nN18244280].
U.S. industrial production unexpectedly fell in September, while capacity utilization eased slightly, according to a Fed report that supported expectations of further monetary easing next month.
The National Association of Home Builders said its October housing market index stood at 16, up from 13 in September
