Deal-making pushes Wall Street higher

Dow Jones: 11,952.97 (+1.06) Nasdaq: 2,639.69 (–4.04) SP 500: 1,271.83 (+0.85)

US STOCKS rose yesterday, rebounding from six weeks of losses, as a pickup in takeovers and the cheapest valuations in nearly a year helped offset concerns about a slowdown in the economic recovery.

The Standard and Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.1 per cent to 1,271.83 in New York after dropping as much as 0.4 per cent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1.06 points, or 0.01 per cent, to 11,952.97 after sliding for six straight weeks, the longest stretch since 2002.

“Corporate managers are more positive on their prospects than investors, which we see expressed in the deals today,” said Tim Hoyle, director of research at Radnor, Pennsylvania-based Haverford Trust.

“People came in this morning and saw these good deals,” he said.

The SP 500 fell 6.8 per cent from the end of April through June 10th as sales of existing homes fell, the unemployment rate rose and concern about the European debt crisis increased.

General Electric, the benchmark’s fifth-largest company by weighting, retreated 15 per cent from this year’s high in February.

Bank of America plummeted 27 per cent in the same period.

Transatlantic rose 10 per cent to $48.50 after agreeing to merge with Allied World Assurance in a $3.2 billion deal that creates a reinsurer with operations in 18 countries.

Timberland climbed 44 per cent to $43.10 after agreeing to be bought for $43 a share.

VF, the world’s largest apparel maker, said the boards of both companies voted to approve the deal and its stock advanced 10 per cent to $100.95.

Graham Packaging jumped 17 per cent to $25.70. The maker of plastic containers controlled by Blackstone said it has received an unsolicited proposal from an unidentified bidder to acquire all of its shares for $25 a share in cash.

Ness Technologies soared 14 per cent to $7.60 after the Israeli computer-services provider agreed to be acquired by Citi Venture Capital for $307 million.

Halliburton, the world’s second-largest oilfield services provider, retreated 2.7 per cent to $46.72.

Freeport, the world's largest publicly traded copper producer, slipped 1.3 per cent to $48.30. – (Bloomberg)