NEW YORK -- A discouraging profit forecast from Union Carbide weighed down the Dow Jones industrial average, but most stock indexes rose today as interest rates fell for the sixth straight session in the bond market. Dow loses 5.45
The Dow fell 5.45 points to close at 7,917.27 after trimming a 37-point deficit near the close. If not for a big drop by Union Carbide Corp., the Dow would have recorded a small gain. For the week, the Dow gained 174.30 points.
Decliners led advancers by a narrow margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 1,389 up, 1,461 down and 569 unchanged. NYSE volume was 630.54 million shares vs. 566.85 million yesterday.
Broader stock indicators turned positive around midday, extending several record-setting streaks.
The Standard & Poor's 500-stock list rose 3.22 to 950.51, moving back within 10 points of its early August peak. The NYSE composite index gained 1.15 to 496.56, just 0.44 below its Aug. 6 record high. The Nasdaq composite rose 10.35 to 1,680.37 for its third record close this week.
The Russell 2000 rose 0.67 to 447.17 and the American Stock Exchange composite index, which is dominated by smaller companies, inched 0.14 higher to 686.94. Both measures have closed at record levels for sixth consecutive sessions.
The price of the Treasury's main 30-year bond was up 5/16 point, or $3.12-1/2 per $1,000 in face value, by late afternoon, while its yield fell to 6.37 percent from 6.40 percent late yesterday.
Trading was dominated by the expiration of futures and options contracts on stocks and stock indexes -- a quarterly event known as "triple witching."