Investor Caution Limits Dow's Rise to 5
NEW YORK, Dec. 2ÛÓBlue-chip stocks edged upward again today, restrained by the caution of investors waiting for the November unemployment report to be released Friday.</br></br>The Dow Jones industrial average rose 5.03 points to 3702.11. Trading volume on the New York Stock Exchange slowed to 253.1 million shares from 287.6 million Wednesday. Advancing NYSE issues outpaced declining ones by about 7 to 5.</br></br>The NasdaqÛªs gain of 0.38 percent outpaced the 0.14 percent rise on the Dow, thanks to gains in the high technology stocks. The Nasdaq index rose 2.92 points to 766.73.</br></br>Analysts said blue-chip investors were cautious from the opening bell. "The fear is always the employment numbers will be extremely strong, and bonds will go down, and the equity market will follow suit,Û said Joseph Barthel, chief investment strategist at Fahnestock & Co.</br></br>A recent spate of strong economic reports has lifted interest rates on the inflation-sensitive bond market, and there was concern that more good news on the economy could drive rates even higher.