Circuit City, Oracle Fall on Earnings; Electronics Chain Drops 18% On Loss, Low Sales Forecast; Morgan Stanley Climbs 1.7%
The Dow Jones Industrial Average took what was shaping up as a down day and turned it into a triumph, climbing to its highest closing level on record.</br></br>The advance came as Circuit City Stores was pounded after issuing earnings, Oracle faltered on its results, but Morgan Stanley rose after posting a record profit.</br></br>The Dow industrials rose 30.05 points, or 0.24%, to 12471.32, its third record close in four sessions. The industrials had been off nearly 44 points and then mounted a midafternoon comeback.</br></br>The Nasdaq Composite Index, affected by software maker Oracle and semiconductor softness, dropped 6.02, or 0.25%, to 2429.55. The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 3.07, or 0.22%, to 1425.55.</br></br>The market still has an upward bias, said David Klaskin, chief investment officer at Oak Ridge Investments. "A lot of investment managers are still sitting on a relatively high level of cash and are using signs of weakness as an opportunity to buy."