Investors dove back into the market today after yesterday’s spell of profit taking to drive key indices higher. The WWD Global Stock Tracker wrapped up the day up 0.67 percent to 114.50 while the broader S&P 500 gained 0.12 percent to close at 2,101.04. The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted a 0.21 percent increase to 18,135.72 while the NASDAQ Composite Stock Index rose 0.32 percent to 4,982.81. In Europe, the FTSE 100 climbed 0.61 percent to 6,961.14 while the Japanese Nikkei 225 gained 0.26 percent to 18,751.84. U.S. investors were weighing tomorrow’s employment report, and strong sales and earnings from supermarket chain Kroger as well as some key players in biotech and the pharmaceutical sector. Analysts and economists are expecting the report to show a solid 235,000 new jobs for February, which is just below the 257,000 jobs posted in January. To add some perspective to the numbers, the flurry of new jobs follows prior reports from the government that reveal continued momentum in average hourly wage growth — which is good news for retailers who need shoppers to dole out their hard-eanred money on spring merchandise. However, there were some analysts – most notably from Goldman Sachs – who said January’s harsh weather
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