U.S. Stocks Rise in S&P 500's Best 2nd Quarter Start Since 1938 (Patterson & Stanton)

Created by : Francis Goodwin View profile

April 1 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. stock market posted its best start to a second quarter in 70 years after Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and UBS AG said they are raising $19 billion to replenish capital, spurring speculation that banks can weather further credit losses.

Lehman rose for the first time in seven days and UBS sparked a rally in Europe on expectations that financial firms will recover from $232 billion in mortgage-related losses. The AMEX Securities Broker/Dealer Index advanced the most since March 18. General Electric Co. and United Technologies Corp. led industrial shares higher after the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index contracted less than forecast.

``The market's getting a little more comfortable that the crisis is over,'' said Henry Herrmann, president and chief executive officer of Waddell & Reed Financial Inc. in Overland Park, Kansas, which manages $65 billion. ``It's a rally associated with the presumed elimination of survival risk.''

The Standard & Poor's 500 Index added 47.29 points, or 3.6 percent, to 1,369.99, rebounding from the worst quarterly performance since 2002. The index hasn't gained more on the first day of the second quarter since a 4.8 percent rally in 1938. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 393.75, or 3.2 percent, to 12,656.64. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 83.65, or 3.7 percent, to 2,362.75. Nine stocks advanced for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange