U.S. stocks gained for the first time in three days as consumer spending and orders for durable goods topped economists’ forecasts, easing concern that companies’ sales would plummet amid the recession. Deere & Co., Citigroup Inc. and Abercrombie & Fitch Co. rose more than 1.2 percent following the Commerce Department reports. Owens-Illinois Inc. rallied 9 percent, while Scana Corp. and FLIR Systems Inc. climbed at least 3.5 percent after being added to the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index. The S&P 500 added 0.5 percent to 867.66 at 10:52 a.m. in New York. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 44.05 points, or 0.5 percent, to 8,463.54. The Russell 2000 Index added less than 0.1 percent. Trading on the New York Stock Exchange will end today at 1 p.m., while exchanges in Germany and Italy were closed for the Christmas holiday. “It would require something unexpected to really jar the market,” said Keith Wirtz, chief investment officer at Fifth Third Asset Management, which manages about $21 billion. “We’re going to finish today and probably Friday fairly quietly. Let’s count that as a Christmas blessing. We’ve had enough excitement this year.” The U.S. stock market historically performs better during the Christmas week, according to Bespoke Investment Group LLC. The Dow average has risen an average 0.7 percent during the holiday season, compared with a 0.1 percent advance for all 4- day periods, data since 1900 from the Harrison, New York-based research firm show. 41 Percent Drop The S&P 500 is headed for its biggest annual slump since 1931, having dropped 41 percent in 2008, as the collapse of credit markets sent the world’s largest economy into a recession and spurred $1 trillion in losses at financial firms. Indexes fell yesterday as concern grew that emergency loans won’t save the auto industry, while home prices plunged and the government confirmed the economy shrank the most since 2001 last quarter. Deere, the largest maker of tractors, climbed 51 cents to $37.79. Citigroup rose 10 cents to $6.62, while Abercrombie & Fitch jumped $1.05 to $21.77. Consumer purchases fell a less-than-forecast 0.6 percent in November, while advancing by 0.6 percent after accounting for inflation, the Commerce Department said. Separate figures showing that first-time unemployment benefit claims reached a 26-year high underscored that spending may have weakened in December. Bookings for goods meant to last several years fell 1 percent, a third the rate forecast by economists, following an 8.4 percent drop in October that was more than previously estimated and the biggest decline in eight years, the Commerce Department said. Excluding transportation gear, orders unexpectedly rose. ‘Difficult to Envision’ “It is difficult to envisage a stronger economy until confidence is restored,” said Andrew Shard, a fund manager at Invesco Perpetual in Henley-on-Thames, England. “Unfortunately I do not think this is likely to happen for some time. A severe recession has been largely discounted in valuations.” Owens-Illinois, the world’s largest maker of glass containers, rose $2 to $24.24. The shares will replace Wachovia Corp. in the S&P 500 after trading ends on Dec. 31, S&P said in a statement. Scana Corp., South Carolina’s largest utility owner, will join the index in the place of Merrill Lynch & Co., while FLIR Systems Inc. will take the place of National City Corp. Scana climbed 3.8 percent to $35.28, while FLIR added 5 percent to $28.10. Stocks in Europe and Asia retreated, sending the MSCI World Index to its fifth straight decline, on concern that deepening recessions in the U.S., U.K. and Japan will snuff out earnings growth.

Source