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NEW YORK, US - Wall Street stocks got a boost Wednesday, following sharp losses a day earlier, as aircraft maker Boeing announced robust earnings and as two big US insurance firms announced merger plans.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended up 43.40 points (0.34 percent) at 12,763.63 just after trading ceased for the day.
The Nasdaq composite gained a hefty 28.27 points (1.19 percent) to 2,405.21 and the Standard & Poor?s 500 broad-market index rose 4.12 points (0.30 percent) to a preliminary close of 1,380.06.
Investor sentiment got a boost as Boeing said its first?quarter profit rose 38 percent from a year ago to 1.2 billion dollars, partly on booming demand for its commercial jets and defense-related equipment.
Unease about US corporate earnings and skyrocketing oil prices persisted, however, as Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines announced combined losses of 10.5-billion-dollars which they largely blamed on surging fuel costs.
On the deal-making front, Liberty Mutual Group announced it was taking over insurance rival Safeco for some 6.2 billion dollars in a deal that would potentially create the fifth largest property and casualty insurer in the United States. --AFP
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