Existing users please login

 

Home

U.S. Stocks Up At The Start On Signs Credit Markets Thawing

 
Kate Gibson
MarketWatch Pulse
     

    NEW YORK -- U.S. stocks opened higher on Monday as traders grew more confident that government measures to stabilize the financial system will work, and investors took in the first of a slew of quarterly earnings reports from an array of sectors. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 69.37 points to 8,921.59. The S&P 500 rose 9.08 points to 949.63, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 19.48 points to 1,730.77.

    Copyright © 2008 MarketWatch, Inc.

     

    Fox Business Video


     

    FOX Translator

    Detach

    No data currently available.

    No data currently available.

    SYMBOL

     
    Specialist

    A specialist is a member of a stock exchange who works as an auctioneer for a specific stock and/or stocks. It can be an individual, partnership, corporation or group of firms.

    The specialist works to maintain a "fair and orderly market" for respective stocks, matching up buyers and sellers by displaying the best "bid" and "ask" prices at its trading post. If buys are not equal to sells, the specialist evens the scale by buying or selling shares, accordingly. However, they cannot make their own transactions until all investor orders have been placed.

    Gauging supply and demand, the specialist sets an opening price for the stocks in its domain. If a price has not been set by the time the market opens, the specialist can delay that particular stock's opening.

    Specialists make money off the "spread," which is the difference between bid and ask prices on orders.