Blue-chip U.S. stocks climbed to an all-time high and bonds rallied on Friday after economic data reassured investors that the economy is still growing and inflation is under control, according to Reuters. At midday, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 47.87 points, or 0.38 percent, at 12,463.95. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 4.54 points, or 0.32 percent, at 1,430.03. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 12.70 points, or 0.52 percent, at 2,466.55. U.S. consumer prices were unchanged in November, even when excluding volatile food and energy costs, the Labor Department said. Investors saw the unexpected calm in the Consumer Price Index as evidence that the Federal Reserve, with less to fear from inflation, could, if necessary, cut interest rates to spur economic growth. But recent gains in employment, retail sales and industrial production in November have cast some doubt over whether an interest-rate cut will be needed next year. "People are starting to believe that the economy will have a soft landing instead of sliding into a recession," said Mike Binger, portfolio manager at Thrivent Financial in Minneapolis. Stocks drew added strength from another round of robust earnings reports, particularly from technology companies. Shares of Adobe Systems Inc. gained 5.2 percent to $42.95 after the design software maker late on Thursday reported higher profits and a first-quarter outlook in line with Wall Street forecasts. Shares of Weyerhaeuser Co. advanced 3.9 percent to $72.25 on the New York Stock Exchange after Deutsche Bank upgraded the forest products company's shares to a "buy" rating. TREASURIES SNAP TWO-DAY SLIDE U.S. Treasuries rallied, snapping a two-day decline, after the surprisingly mild readings on consumer inflation led players to unwind short positions, bets that bond prices would fall, traders said. "The CPI readings were good news and certainly worth buying on," said John Canavan, analyst at Stone and McCarthy Research Associates. "But more importantly, the data in the week prior to the CPI report had been uniformly bearish for Treasuries so traders were leaning in the wrong direction going into CPI and had to cover shorts after the report." Yields on benchmark 10-year notes, sensitive to inflation expectations, eased to 4.55 percent from 4.60 percent on Thursday. Two-year note yields, responsive to changing perceptions of Fed policy, eased to 4.68 percent, from 4.74 percent on Thursday. Yields move inversely to prices. Data suggesting a rebound in foreign demand for Treasuries also lent support to the bond market rally. DOLLAR RISES, PROFITS ON EURO RUN-UP POCKETED The dollar rose as currency investors pocketed profits from the euro's big run-up and reversed an initial dollar sell-off after a tame reading of November inflation. Traders said institutional investors were behind a euro sell-off that drove the currency to a session low of $1.3078, according to Reuters data. "It seems some real money is selling the currencies, buying dollars. It's nothing other than people booking profits. People are taking money off the table that's been there for some time," said John McCarthy, vice president of foreign exchange at ING Capital Markets in New York. Still, the dollar was only modestly higher against the yen at 117.62 yen, down from a session high at 118.32 yen. The euro had earlier erased all its losses against the dollar but a bout of technical selling against the yen dragged it down to $1.3144 against the dollar, virtually flat on the day and down from a high of $1.3186. Crude oil prices rose towards $63 a barrel after OPEC agreed to cut supply for a second time in two months, underscoring its determination to prop up prices. U.S. gold futures, an inflation hedge, fell to a four-week low. Benchmark February gold at the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange was down $3.20 at $627.70 an ounce at
