State index slumps, but Dillard’s surges

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, closed Friday at 439.67, down 9.06.

Only four index stocks rose Friday. On Wall Street, stocks pared gains Friday afternoon as shares of tech companies fell, tempering optimism that drove the market higher on betterthan estimated economic data, including a positive retail sales report for September.

Dillard’s shares rose 10.2%, reflecting an 11% increase in spending at retail clothing stores in September from August.

“It’s encouraging we are seeing people willing to spend,” Jeffrey Kleintop, chief global investment strategist for Charles Schwab, told Bloomberg News. “If we don’t get a stimulus deal, how much longer can that be sustained?”

The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.