Stocks surged higher today after crude oil dropped below $120 a barrel for the first time in three months and the Federal Reserve left its key interest rates unchanged.
At the close, the Dow Jones industrials were up 332 points, or 2.9%, to 11,616. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 36 points, or 2.9%, to 1,285, and the Nasdaq Composite Index was up 64 points, or 2.8%, to 2,350.
The Dow and S&P 500 gains were their biggest since April 1. The Nasdaq’s gain was its largest since July 16, when it jumped 69 points.
After the close, shares of networking giant Cisco Systems (CSCO, news, msgs) were up 1.1% to $22.90 from a regular close of $22.65. The company reported fiscal-fourth-quarter earnings of 40 cents a share, a penny better than expectations, and up 11% from a year ago. Analysts had expected 39 cents a share. Revenue was up 10% to $10.4 billion.
Crude oil closed at $119.17 a barrel in New York, down 1.8% from Monday and off 19% from its intraday high of $147.22 a barrel on July 11. It was the lowest close for crude since May 5, when it finished at $119.57.
African American Money 
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