Russell 2000 rises as oil jumps

Alex Alexandrov | Nov 06, 2007 4:55pm EST | Comment

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The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) recovered from early losses and posted solid gains as a jump in the price of oil lifted energy stocks. The small-cap index added 11.34 points, or 1.43%, to 801.77. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) advanced 117.54 points, or 0.87%, to 13,660.94.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 has increased 1.82%, while the Dow has added 9.51% and the S&P 500 has gained 7.32%.

The price of oil jumped $3.01 to $96.99 a barrel today on news the U.S. Energy Information Administration forecasted that world oil demand growth in the next two quarters will be higher than it previously estimated and a shutdown in production in the North Sea due to expectations of stormy weather.

That led to a rise in shares of energy companies, helping to lift sagging stocks.

Futures were pointing up this morning on news that Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) has hired an expert to manage its $43 billion subprime mortgage portfolio and a raised price target for Internet giant Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG).

The indices opened with a rise, but the bulls lost their footing following news that Redbook Research, a publisher of statistics on the U.S. retail market, reported a 0.4% drop in U.S. chain store sales in the final week of October. With consumption comprising about 70% of gross domestic product, a slowdown could spell trouble for the economy.

The Russell 2000 fell into negative territory and bottomed out at about 11 a.m. ET, then reversed course and began a slow but consistent recovery.

Here are the day’s biggest percentage gainers and losers, along with top volume leaders, among companies with a market cap between $100 million and $750 million:

Biggest percentage gainers:

• Chesapeake Corp. (CSK), up 38% to $7.87 on news that third-quarter profit beat expectations.
• DivX Inc. (DIVX), up 33% to $15.89 on news of third-quarter earnings that beat expectations.
• China Architectural Engineering Inc. (RCH), up 24% to $10.30. A company representative could not be reached for comment.

Biggest percentage losers:

• Momenta Pharmaceuticals Inc. (MNTA), down 58% to $5.67 on news of a new drug being put on hold by regulators.
• Emageon Inc. (EMAG) down 32% to $5.09 on news of a wider third-quarter loss.
• Albany Molecular Research Inc. (AMRI), down 29% to $12.31 on news that third-quarter earnings missed expectations.

Volume leaders:

• Momenta Pharmaceuticals Inc. (MNTA) 17,483,300 shares traded on news of a new drug being put on hold by regulators.
• Novatel Wireless Inc. (NVTL) 7,972,600 shares traded on news it swung to a third-quarter profit.
• Powerwave Technologies Inc. (PWAV) 5,677,300 shares traded.

The day saw 89 small-cap stocks set 52-week lows, while 31 small caps established 52-week highs.