Wall Street report: Monday close

HAPPY talk from brokers and companies calmed accounting worries, helping markets climb for the second straight session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average leapt 140.54 points or 1.4% to 9884.78. The Nasdaq, after sagging 5.4% in the prior five sessions, rose 27.78 points or 1.5% to 1846.66.

Brokers and executives seemed determined to erase investor concerns that another Enron was waiting in the wings. One example was Qualcomm, the wireless equipment maker hammered last week on accounting concerns. Its shares rebounded $3.84 or 10% to $41.28 as several analysts branded such concerns outdated or overblown. A similar defence was put forward by ABN Amro to help boost networking gear maker Cisco Systems 93 cents or 5.6% to $17.69.

Tyco International, which has executed a spirited defence of its accounting, rebounded another $1.92 or 6.4% to $31.80. But telco Qwest slid 24 cents or 2.5% to $9.36 after it said the Securities and Exchange Commission was seeking information from Qwest in an investigation of bankrupt Global Crossing.

'People are getting more comfortable with the whole accounting issue,' said Owen Fitzpatrick of Deutsche Bank Private Banking. 'Companies are coming out pretty quickly when they are attacked.'

Package delivery company Federal Express rose $1.73 or 3.2% to $55.13 after it said it would meet or beat profit forecasts.

Media conglomerate Vivendi added $1.51 or 3.7% to $42.91 after it said it fourth-quarter sales came in 9% above expectations, helped in part by the movie 'The Fast and the Furious'. Corning, which makes optical fibre equipment, gained 73 cents or 9.7% to $8.25 as it said that the current quarter represented a 'bottoming out' in its business. Defence equipment maker United Technologies firmed $1.02 or 1.5% to $69.10 after it re-affirmed profit targets.

Chemicals giant DuPont leapt $1.84 or 4.3% to $44.56 after it said it might spin off its textiles businesses, which analysts estimated to be worth $6.5bn. Hewlett-Packard rose 45 cents or 2.2% to $20.85 on increasing odds that chief executive Carly Fiorina might win her bid to take over personal computer maker Compaq. Compaq shares were flat at $11.54. Tech gear maker Handspring soared $1.49 or 34% to $5.90 after it released a new hand-held computer and was upgraded by at least one broker.

Among Dow components, Alcoa climbed $1.31 or 3.8% to $35.73, American Express retreated 33 cents or 1% to $33.52 and International Paper tacked on $1.82 or 4.3% to $43.81. Techs rallied later in the day with Microsoft higher by 48 cents or 0.8% to $61.13 and Intel up $1.05 or 3.2% to $33.57.