US stocks rose on Monday as software company Siebel Systems Inc boosted technology shares with a better-than-expected sales outlook and Friday's start-of-quarter buying spree ran into the new week.
Improved investor sentiment about the economy also encouraged the buying of stocks.
Oil prices eased after rebels in Nigeria withdrew a threat to target oil operations in that country, but lingering concerns over tight supplies ahead of winter kept prices close to $50 per barrel.
Siebel Systems rose 14 percent after the business software company said it expects third-quarter revenue above Wall Street expectations. Siebel jumped $1.15 to $9.34, lifting the Standard & Poor's 500 and the Nasdaq.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 23.89 points, or 0.23 percent, at 10,216.54. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index ended up 3.67 points, or 0.32 percent, at 1,135.17. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index was up 10.20 points, or 0.53 percent, at 1,952.40.
More than one stock rose for every one that declined on the New York Stock Exchange. About three stocks advanced for every two that declined on Nasdaq.
Markets also garnered strength from positive comments on the economy on Monday from the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, Anthony Santomero, who expects the US economy will grow in the range of 3.5 percent to 4.0 percent for the rest of the year and through 2005.
American Express Co rose after the Supreme Court let stand a ruling that Visa and MasterCard credit card associations violated US antitrust law by barring member banks from issuing credit and charge cards on rival networks owned by American Express and Morgan Stanley.
American Express shares climbed 2 percent to $52.63, helping the blue chip Dow.
SBC Communications rose 2.2 percent to $26.90. The phone company said it will launch a messaging service that merges some functions of voice mail and e-mail, tying cell phones, landline telephones and fax machines together.
Semiconductor stocks helped lift the market. National Semiconductor Corp, a maker of chips that manage power consumption in electronics, gained 2.6 percent to $16.75 after it said on Friday it would begin paying a quarterly dividend.
Intel Corp rose 1.3 percent to $21.13.
SunGard Data Systems Inc rose 10.6 percent to $27 after the company said it would spin off its data recovery business.
Retail stocks climbed after a Merrill Lynch report said retailers' shares are likely to rally in October and November and third-quarter earnings will be better than expected because of healthy inventory levels and Wall Street's lowered expectations. Target Corp rose $1.24 to $46.69.
PeopleSoft Inc fell 2.8 percent to $22.20. The company said third-quarter revenue would exceed Wall Street expectations, but the news could be used by PeopleSoft's management to fight a hostile take-over bid by Oracle Corp, an analyst said.
General Motors Corp fell 1.5 percent to $42.48 after Bear Stearns lowered its rating on GM to "peer perform" from "outperform" amid a broad sector downgrade.