New York – Stocks rose slightly Monday, with the Dow Jones industrial average briefly touching a new intraday trading high, after the U.N. Security Council condemned North Korea over its claim of an underground nuclear test.
Wall Street had opened the session lower after North Korea announced it had set off an atomic weapon underground. Reports that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries was near announcing its first output cut in two years sent oil prices higher. But stock prices turned mixed by midday and were higher by early afternoon.
“We are heartened by the fact the market seems to be shrugging off a major geopolitical event,” said Jim Russell, director of core equity strategy for Fifth-Third Asset Management in Cincinnati, which manages $22 billion.
But Russell added that because of the Columbus Day holiday, volume was too light to say the day’s trading represented a trend or theme.
The Dow rose 7.60, or 0.06 percent, to 11,857.81. The Dow remains near its record closing high of 11,866.69.
Broader stock indicators ended slightly higher. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 1.08, or 0.08 percent, to 1,350.66, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 11.78, or 0.51 percent, to 2,311.77.
The Dow briefly crossed 11,872.94, a new intraday trading high during the session. Last week, the Dow hit new closing records for three straight sessions. Stocks have been rallying since their six-month lows in late July; the Standard & Poor’s 500 has rebounded more than 9 percent since its July lows.
Some cyclical stocks, such as semiconductors and department stores, have seen run-ups greater than 18 percent since the July lows, said David Sowerby, portfolio manager at Loomis, Sayles & Co, which manages $75 billion.
The rally has left investors divided about whether stocks are set to march higher or whether they are already at the top.
