Big gains for Caterpillar and 3M lead US stocks higher

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are rising Tuesday as construction equipment maker Caterpillar and Post-it note maker 3M lead a rally in industrial companies, while banks are climbing along with interest rates. Technology companies are also advancing. Steep losses for drugmakers Biogen and Eli Lilly and health insurer Centene are pulling health care companies lower.

KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor’s 500 index gained 5 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,570 as of 11:45 a.m. Eastern time. It fell 10 points on Monday. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 194 points, or 0.8 percent, to 23,468 thanks to big gains from Caterpillar and 3M. Combined, those companies added 151 points to the Dow’s gain. The Nasdaq composite climbed 20 points, or 0.3 percent, to 6,607. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks added 6 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,503.

INDUSTRIAL POWER: Heavy equipment maker Caterpillar continued to rally after it raised its profit forecast. The company said construction equipment revenue jumped in the third quarter and demand from China is strong, while it’s getting a lot of business from the oil and gas markets in North America. Its stock gained $5.59, or 4.2 percent, to $137.27, and it’s up 48 percent in 2017. 3M expects a bigger profit and better sales after demand for electronics and energy products rose, and it added $15.65, or 7.1 percent, to $237.20.

Caterpillar and 3M are two of the biggest winners on the 30-company Dow average this year. The top gainer is aerospace company Boeing, which rose $4.01, or 1.5 percent, to $266.33, giving it a 71-percent jump since the start of 2017.

Tool maker Stanley Black & Decker also raised its profit projection and climbed $6.80, or 4.3 percent, to $164.99.

BONDS: Bond prices continued to fall. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.41 percent from 2.37 percent. That helped banks, as higher interest rates boost their profits on lending. Bank of America gained 52 cents, or 1.9 percent, to $27.68 and JPMorgan Chase rose $1.45, or 1.5 percent, to $27.68.

HEALTH WOES: Health care companies took steep losses. Drugmaker Biogen fell $15.26, or 4.6 percent, to $313.29 as analysts were unenthusiastic about revenue from its multiple sclerosis drugs. Eli Lilly sank $2.51, or 2.9 percent, to $84.67. The company had a solid third quarter, but said diabetes drug prices are still under pressure. Lilly also said it may sell its Elanco animal health unit. That business had been an important part of Lilly’s strategy as important older drugs like Zyprexa and Cymbalta lost patent protection.

Medicaid program administrator Centene shed $4.57, or 4.7 percent, to $93.42.

DOWN THE DRAIN: Appliance maker Whirlpool had a weak quarter as costs were high and the company struggled to integrate European businesses it’s bought over the last few years. Whirlpool also slashed its profit forecast for the year. Whirlpool lost $18.59, or 10.2 percent, to $163.91.

Whirlpool’s ties to Sears are also ending after 100 years. Sears says it’s no longer selling Maytag appliances or other Whirlpool products effective immediately. The company recently told its stores that Whirlpool was making demands that would have made it hard to sell its appliances at competitive prices. Sears lost 22 cents, or 3.4 percent, to $6.34.

BOUNCING BACK: Facebook climbed $1.93, or 1.1 percent, to $173.18 and Oracle rose 70 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $50.02. Specialty glass maker Corning jumped $1.90, or 6.3 percent, to $31.91 after its third-quarter report surpassed what Wall Street expected.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude gained 41 cents to $52.31 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, gained 67 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $58.04 a barrel in London.

CURRENCY: The dollar edged up to 113.94 yen from 113.73 yen. The euro rose to $1.1765 from $1.1738.

OVERSEAS: Germany’s DAX rose 0.1 percent and the French CAC-40 gained 0.2 percent. The FTSE 100 in London added 0.1 percent. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rose for the 16th day in a row, which extended a post-World War II record. The index added 0.5 percent. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong lost 0.5 percent and Seoul’s Kospi was unchanged.