STOCKS weekly review (01.07 – 05.07.2013) USA

U.S. stocks rose, sending the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index to the biggest rally in three weeks, after government data showed the nation added more jobs than forecast last month.

The S&P 500 gained 1.6% for the week to 1,631.89. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1% to 15,135.84. The tech NASDAQ Comp rose 2.27% to 3,479.38. U.S. markets were closed yesterday for the Independence Day holiday.

Payrolls rose by 195,000 workers for a second straight month, the Labor Department reported today in Washington. The median forecast projected a 165,000 gain after a previously reported 175,000 increase in May. The jobless rate stayed at 7.6%, while hourly earnings in the year ended in June advanced by the most since July 2011.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. added 2.3% and Bank of America Corp. advanced 1.8%.

Lincoln, the life insurer with more than $200 billion in assets, climbed 5.4%. Higher interest rates can boost profits for life insurers, which invest premiums from clients in bonds and other assets to back future payouts. MetLife Inc., the largest U.S. life insurer, gained 2.7%.

Regional lenders rose as KeyCorp, Ohio’s second-largest bank, jumped 5%. SunTrust Banks Inc. advanced 4.2%, while Zions Bancorporation increased 4.3%.

Tesla Motors Inc. added 4.2% to a record $120.09 after saying it received hundreds of orders for its new Model S sedan, enough to double the number of electric cars on Hong Kong’s streets. The company, headed by billionaire Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk, has forecast it will sell 21,000 units of the Model S globally this year, with deliveries to Europe and Asia beginning in the second half.

An S&P index of homebuilders fell 3.4% to the lowest level since December as Treasury yields rose to the highest level in almost two years. All its 11 members retreated. Toll Brothers Inc. dropped 3% while Lennar Corp. slipped 4%.

Gold producers declined as the metal’s price plunged 3.1%. Barrick Gold Corp., the world’s largest miner of the precious metal, sank 6.3%. Newmont Mining Corp. fell 4.3% for the biggest loss in the S&P 500.

Alcoa Inc. will unofficially start the second-quarter earnings season as the biggest U.S. aluminum producer will report results after the market closes on July 8.

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