Blue Chips End Up, Helped by Retailers
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U.S. blue chips ended higher on  Thursday, their first positive finish in 2005, with investors  encouraged by a strengthening dollar and December sales figures  from retailers.
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U.S. blue chips moved higher  on  Thursday, getting a lift from Johnson & Johnson JNJ.N  following its acquisition of medical device maker Guidant Corp.  GDT.N, but broader market gains were capped after investment  bank Goldman Sachs posted disappointing quarterly revenues.
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Stocks rose on Monday, after Merrill  Lynch  said it was getting a big foreign investment and  with investors eyeing retailers as the busy holiday shopping  season draws to a close.
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Major indexes rose today as investors were assuaged by solid earnings results from blue-chip names.
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Leading shares ended higher, bolstered by strength in energy stocks and M&amp;A hopes in utilities, but earlier gains were tempered by a mixed Wall Street after blue chips touched levels not seen since September 2000.
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Stocks rose on Monday, lifted by news Merrill Lynch  plans to sell a lending unit and with investors eyeing retailers as the busy holiday shopping season draws to a close.
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U.S. blue-chip stocks finished higher  on Friday, helped by gains in energy companies' shares,  although investors showed caution before next Tuesday's  presidential election.
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U.S. blue-chip stocks edged higher on Thursday as investors pored over mixed November same-store sales from retailers including solid numbers from Target Corp. and disappointing data from J.C. Penney Co. Inc. and others.
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U.S. blue-chip stocks finished  slightly higher on Friday while technology stocks slipped, as  investors showed caution before next week's presidential  election.
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U.S. blue-chip stocks edged up on Monday after an unexpectedly strong sales estimate from Wal-Mart Stores Inc. , while tech stocks fell on doubts that Microsoft Corp.'s new Vista operating system could reinvigorate the share price.
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Stocks rose on Monday, after Merrill Lynch  said it was getting a big foreign investment and with investors eyeing retailers as the busy holiday shopping season draws to a close.
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Leading British blue chips extended gains in late trade to close markedly higher, taking heart from strong gains across US markets led by gains in telecoms on positive earnings news and mergers and acquisition speculation, dealers said.
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U.S. blue chips inched up on Monday after Wal-Mart reported strong sales over the weekend, but gains were limited by Microsoft Corp.  as investors digested the latest economic data and corporate earnings.
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UK blue chips closed higher Tuesday, having stayed in positive territory throughout the session, reflecting a strong showing on Wall Street sparked by takeover talk and a rebound in consumer confidence, with Vodafone the top FTSE 100 gainer.
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Blue-chip stocks rose on Friday, lifting the Dow to a record, as General Electric Co  increased a stock buyback plan and a report showed consumer sentiment rose in early July.
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Blue-chip stocks edged higher on Friday, pushing the Dow to a record, as General Electric Co  increased a stock buyback plan and a report showed consumer sentiment rose in early July.
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U.S. blue-chip stocks rose on Thursday  as better-than-expected economic data, healthy company earnings  and merger talk lifted the mood on Wall Street.