Wall street edges up on economic growth

Signs of strength in the labour market and manufacturing sector, as well as higher quarterly profit from FedEx, pushed United States stocks slightly higher on Thursday.Reuters reported that the mood was, however, still fragile, as investors kept their eyes on Europes festering debt crisis.The data signaled a continuation of the now familiar tug of war between optimism about the US economy and fears that Europes debt crisis could spark a global recession.Reflecting that struggle, indexes were off their highs of the morning and the Nasdaq bobbed around the breakeven mark, suggesting investors were hesitating before buying into the better-than-expected US data.The world economic outlook is quite gloomy and will require action by all countries to head off an escalating crisis that carries risks of a global depression, the head of the International Monetary Fund, Ms. Christine Lagarde, said.Chief Investment Officer of Solaris Asset Management in Bedford Hills, Mr. Tim Ghriskey, said the question for investors was whether the US economy could continue to grow in the event of a serious recession in Europe.FedEx Corporation shares were up by 5.3 per cent at $81.36 after the package delivery company, seen as a bellwether of economic activity, reported higher-than-expected quarterly profit.The news from FedEx was welcome after a number of high-profile companies warned about revenues and profits in recent days.On Thursday Honeywell said Europes slowing economy would take a toll on orders. But the shares rose by 1.2 per cent after it forecast profit in line with expectations.The Dow Jones industrial average rose 45.60 points, or 0.39 per cent, at 11,869.08.The Standard & Poors 500 added 4.07 points, or 0.34 per cent, at 1,215.89. The Nasdaq Composite fell 2.45 points, or 0.10 percent, at 2,536.86.New applications for unemployment insurance fell to a 3-1/2 year low, suggesting a job market recovery was gaining speed, while a gauge of New York state manufacturing activity rose to its highest level since May.It all speaks to further stabilization and a very positive trend in the US economy, the Managing Director at Knight Capital in Jersey City, Mr. Peter Kenny.Wall Street fell for a third day on Wednesday to its lowest level in two weeks with the market highly sensitive to developments in Europe.Spain saw bond yields fall in a well-received auction, raising roughly twice what the government had targeted. Equity markets have lately tracked European bond prices, using them as a gauge of risk appetite.
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