U.S. Stocks Rally, Led by Banks, as Fed Cuts Rate to Record Low

Dec. 16 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rallied and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index climbed to a five-week high after the Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest rate to a record low and said it will employ “all available tools” to revive the economy.

Citigroup Inc. jumped 11 percent and JPMorgan Chase & Co. climbed 13 percent after the central bank said it “stands ready to expand” purchases of mortgage-backed securities. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. rallied 14 percent after its first quarterly loss as a public company was smaller than some analysts’ estimates. Boeing Co. and Intel Corp. jumped more than 7.2 percent as all 10 industry groups in the S&P 500 increased more than 2.2 percent after the Fed’s announcement.

“A big, widespread, explosive, incendiary shell has come out of the Fed’s cannon,” said Frederic Dickson, who helps oversee about $19 billion as chief market strategist at D.A. Davidson & Co. in Lake Oswego, Oregon. “It’s a bloody big deal. This is the kick-it-up-a-notch moment.”

The S&P 500 added 5.1 percent to 913.16. The advance put the benchmark index above its average level during the past 50 days for the first time since September. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 359.61 points, or 4.2 percent, to 8,924.14. The Russell 2000 Index of small companies increased 6.7 percent.

The Fed cut its target rate for overnight loans between banks to a range of zero to 0.25 percent. The Fed’s decision came after simultaneous recessions in the U.S., Europe and Japan dragged the S&P 500 down almost 45 percent from its 2007 record and sent benchmark indexes from Brazil to Bangkok into bear markets.

Banks Rally

Citigroup climbed 83 cents to $8.23, while JPMorgan jumped $3.72 to $32.35. The S&P 500 Financials Index jumped 11 percent, the steepest gain among 10 industries and the group’s steepest advance since Nov. 24.

The Fed said in its statement that the recession is likely to warrant exceptionally low levels of the federal funds rate “for some time.” The statement noted that the Fed has already announced it will purchase agency debt and mortgage-backed securities, and said the central bank is ready to expand the program. Policy makers continue to weigh the potential benefits of buying longer-term Treasury securities, the statement said.

“They’re trying to rekindle the confidence of consumers and businesses, and that ultimately drives profits in the stock market,” said Bruce McCain, chief investment strategist at Key Private Bank in Cleveland, Ohio, which manages $30 billion.

Treasury notes rallied, sending yields to record lows, on expectations the Fed will buy the securities to force borrowing costs lower. The dollar weakened to $1.40 against the euro for the first time in two months.

Goldman’s Loss

Goldman Sachs added $9.54, the most since Nov. 24, to $76. Its loss of $4.97 a share in the three months ended Nov. 28 was the company’s first quarterly deficit since going public in 1999 as asset values and investment-banking fees declined. The average estimate of 18 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg was for a loss of $3.73, with UBS AG’s Glenn Schorr estimating a loss of as much as $5.50 a share.

Compensation and benefits, the firm’s biggest expense, fell to a negative $490 million in the quarter, as the company cut 2,500 jobs and lowered average pay per employee 45 percent to $363,654. The company that set a Wall Street profit record in 2007 converted to a bank-holding company and accepted $10 billion from the U.S. government earlier this year as investors lost confidence in companies that rely on debt-market funding.

Morgan Stanley, the Goldman Sachs competitor that also became a bank, rallied 18 percent to $16.13. The firm will report fourth-quarter results tomorrow. Analysts estimate a loss of 34 cents a share, excluding some items, according to a Bloomberg survey.