Dow closes above 11,000 for first time in 18 months

NEW YORK: US stocks edged higher on Monday ahead of the unofficial kickoff of the corporate earnings season, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing above 11,000 for the first time in 18 months.

The blue-chip Dow gained 10.05 points, a fractional 0.09 percent, to hit 11,007.40 at the market close.

The last time the bellwether index closed above the psychologically significant 11,000 threshold was on September 26, 2008, days after the collapse of Wall Street investment bank Lehman Brothers triggered a global financial meltdown that led to global recession.



The Dow briefly crossed the 11,000-level in intraday trade Friday for the first time since September 29, 2008.

The tech-rich Nasdaq composite added 3.82 points (0.16 percent) at 2,457.87 and the broad-market Standard & Poor's 500 index points climbed 2.17 (0.18 percent) to a provisional 1,196.54.

Market action was "rather quiet and trading volume has been moderate," Briefing.com analysts said.

"The lack of interest among investors comes amid the primary question of whether stocks can continue their upward trend into earnings season, especially if results prove upbeat and profit takers decide to step in."