NEW YORK?? The Dow Jones industrial average gained for a second straight day Thursday as Apple bounced back from a steep sell-off.
The gains came a day after Apple took its worst fall in four years. In separate interviews, chief executive Tim Cook said Apple will produce one of its Mac computers in the United States next year and will spend $100 million in 2013 to shift production of the line from China.
The tech giant's stock gained $8.45 to $547.24
The Dow rose 39.55 points to close at 13,074.04. Intel led the index, rising 31 cents to $20.16.
Investors' biggest concern remains the automatic tax increases and federal spending cuts scheduled to start Jan. 1.
"Everybody is paying close attention to the soap opera in Washington," said John Canally, investment strategist and economist at LPL Financial.
President Barack Obama said Wednesday that the White House and Republicans could reach an agreement "in about a week" if the Republicans drop their opposition to raising taxes on those making more than $250,000 a year.
Many investors believe Obama and congressional Republicans will strike a budget deal to avoid the "fiscal cliff" before the year is out. Until they reach an agreement, however, the stock market will likely be hostage to news out of Washington.
In other trading, the Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 4.66 points to 1,413.94, while the Nasdaq composite climbed 15.57 points to 2,989.27.
The U.S. Labor Department said unemployment-benefits applications dropped 25,000 last week to 370,000, a level consistent with modest hiring.
The government will release its closely watched monthly jobs report Friday. Private economists forecast that hiring in November sank from the previous month. They expect the unemployment rate to remain unchanged at 7.9 percent.
More companies announced plans to reward investors with dividends this month in case taxes rise next year.
Safeway shifted a payment scheduled for January to Dec. 31. And Landstar Systems, a transportation company, will pay shareholders 50 cents a share this month instead of paying dividends for the next two years.
Dividends, now taxed at 15 percent, will be treated as ordinary income next year unless Congress and the White House extend current tax breaks as part of a budget deal.
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