Stocks Step Up

Indices ended in the green zone Wednesday. Technology shares such as Cisco Systems, Hewlett-Packard, and Intel led the Dow’s ascent, alongside gains from the likes of Walt Disney, Chevron and Alcoa. Stocks climbed amid a variety of economics news. Services industry activity subsided last month. The Institute for Supply Management’s non-manufacturing index fell to 53 in September, as expected, from 53.3 in August. Meanwhile, Automatic Data Processing said U.S. companies added 91,000 jobs in September, up from a revised 89,000 in August. The result exceeded an anticipated addition of 75,000. Elsewhere, Costco released quarterly details. The warehouse retailer said fourth-quarter net income jumped 10.6% to $478 million, or $1.08 a share, compared with $432 million, or 97 cents, a year earlier. On the horizon, the Labor Department will issue weekly jobless claims numbers tomorrow.

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