Corporate news sends U.S. stocks higher; Dollar General jumps after making bid for Family Dollar

8/18/2014

NEW YORK — A bidding contest for a discount retailer and easing concerns about Ukraine helped send U.S. stock indexes higher today.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 175 points, or 1.1 percent, to close at 16,838.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 16 points, or 0.9 percent, to 1,971.

The Nasdaq composite gained 43 points, or 1 percent, to 4,508.

Dollar General jumped 12 percent after the company made a bid to buy Family Dollar. The company is hoping to beat out a rival bid from Dollar Tree.

Airline stocks rose as the price of oil fell, which could mean lower costs for jet fuel. United Continental and American Airlines each climbed 4 percent.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.39 percent.