FASHION STOCKS JOIN RALLY
NEW YORK — Many fashion stocks rallied along with the broader market Wednesday.
The Dow Jones industrial Average, encouraged by word that the Federal Reserve had sold dollars to support the depressed Japanese yen, rose 164.2 points Wednesday to close at 8,829.46, nearly wiping out Monday’s 207-point slide. On Tuesday, the Dow rose 37 points.
Among manufacturers and designers, big gainers included Gucci Group NV, up 1 15/16 to 54 11/16.
Gucci is being watched carefully by investors, in the wake of the news Tuesday that the Italian fashion house Prada had hiked its stake in Gucci to 9.5 percent from 5 percent.
Other vendors that were pushing ahead includedJones Apparel Group, up 2 7/8 to 66 3/16; Liz Claiborne, 1 3/16 to 52 11/16; Tommy Hilfiger Corp., 1 1/4 to 59 51/6, and St. John Knits, 7/8 to 38 13/16.
On the retail side, notable increases were seen by Saks Holdings, picking up 1 5/16 to 24 3/16; J.C. Penney Co., 1 5/8 to 77 1/8; May Department Stores, 1 15/16 to 65 3/16; Nordstrom, 2 1/4 to 71 3/4; Ross Stores, 1 7/16 to 41 13/16; TJX Cos., 2 3/16 to 50 1/4, and Wal-Mart, 1 3/16 to 58 7/16.