The Dow Notches Its Best September in 71 Years

The Dow Notches Its Best September in 71 Years 

  The Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) recorded its best September in more than 70 years, which is historically a tough month for the market. 

Stocks started Thursday's session with gains, helped by a drop in weekly initial jobless claims, as well as better readings on second-quarter gross domestic product and regional manufacturing. 

The economy made some modest progress on the labor front last week, as the number of new jobless claims filed fell 16,000 to 453,000, the U.S. Labor Department said Thursday, while economists on average expected claims to come in at 459,000. A better-than-expected revised reading on second-quarter GDP and  surprise jump in the Chicago Purchasing Managers Index also conspired to give equities and early lift. 

Source: Economy, Investing, Market News, Financial Times, Dan Burrows, 9/30/2010