Stocks Rise on Job, Price Data

Stocks climbed at the open, following jobless claims and wholesale price reports that, for once, didn’t contain any nasty surprises. The Dow was up 35 points, while the Nasdaq and S&P each rose about 0.8%. The producer-price index rose 0.8% in January, reflecting a widespread rise in wholesale prices. Meanwhile, the level of new jobless claims remained constant, though the number of workers drawing unemployment benefits for more than a week hit a new record. (More stock market stories.)