FINANCIAL MARKETS : Dow, Nasdaq Again Enter Record Turf

Blue-chip stocks edged up to another record close Thursday, extending the previous day’s stunning 47-point climb, as technology stocks continued to charm investors fixated on corporate earnings.

Gains in the market-leading technology sector also boosted the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite to another record, up 5.52 points to 994.15, after trading near the 1,000 mark with an intraday record high of 999.73. This followed the index’s sizzling 18-point gain Wednesday. Nasdaq volume again set a record at 530.104 million shares traded.

The Dow Jones industrial average tacked on 0.19 of a point to close at 4,727.48. Nonetheless, declining issues edged advancers on the New York Stock Exchange.

The dollar fell against major European currencies after Germany’s central bank did not cut interest rates, a move many foreign exchange traders had been awaiting. In late New York trading, the dollar was quoted at 1.3898 German marks, down from 1.4030 marks late Wednesday.

A cut in German rates would have tended to boost the dollar and depress the mark.

The decision by the Bundesbank, Germany’s central bank, came just hours after Switzerland’s central bank pared a half a point from one of its key lending rates.

In addition to the United States and Switzerland, Japan and France have trimmed interest rates in recent days.

Against the Japanese yen, the dollar eased slightly to 87.44 from Wednesday’s 87.48.

Treasury bond yields changed little. The main 30-year bond yield rose to 6.55%, up 0.01 point from Wednesday.

Among market highlights:

* Among the technology leaders, IBM rose 2 1/8 to 103 3/4, Hewlett-Packard added 2 1/4 to 83 5/8. Dell Computer climbed 2 7/8 to 69 3/4, and Apple advanced 1 1/2 to 48 1/2. However, topping the Big Board actives list was Tandem Computers, which fell 3 1/2 to 13 after the computer maker said its operating income will be hurt by higher research and development costs in the third quarter. Motorola dropped 3/8 to 75 1/4, giving back some of Wednesday’s 5 1/8-point gain.

* Analysts said news that the Food and Drug Administration may regulate cigarette companies cast a pall over the market. Tobacco shares that fell on the news included Philip Morris, down 1 3/8 to 75 3/4; RJR Nabisco, off 1/2 to 27 1/2; Loews, off 1 3/8 to 123, and UST off 1/2 to 29.

* Among other active stocks: Abbott Laboratories was upgraded to “buy” by Smith Barney on news that its second-quarter earnings rose to 53 cents a share from 46 cents a year ago. The stock rose 3/4 to 38 1/2. J.P. Morgan shed 1 1/4 to 73 3/8 after it posted quarterly earnings that disappointed some by being merely respectable rather than gang-busting, analysts said.

* The initial public offering of MEMC Electronic jumped 5 5/8 to 29 5/8 in its first day of trading. The company produces silicon wafers used in the manufacture of semiconductors.

* Shares of Sears, Roebuck opened Thursday at 30 3/8 to reflect the spinoff of its 80% share of Allstate Corp. The stock closed at $61 on Wednesday and at 32 1/4 on Thursday. Sears shareholders received .927035 of a share of Allstate for each Sears common share.

Overseas, Tokyo stocks closed lower for the first time in eight sessions, but overall sentiment remained bullish. In the afternoon, stock indexes rebounded from negative territory, but profit-taking pushed prices back down before the close. The 225-share Nikkei average ended down 100.07 points at 16,505.67.

The U.S. Agriculture Department reported this week that U.S. wheat supplies will shrink to 428 million bushels ahead of the next harvest. In June, the government had predicted leftover stocks would be 459 million bushels.

In addition, world wheat stocks are expected to drop to 107 million metric tons, according to the USDA, down from its previous forecast of 113 million.

In an underscoring of the situation, the European Union’s cereals management committee said Thursday that it was suspending all tenders for the export of grain to non-European destinations until Sept. 7.

“That just draws more attention to the low stocks,” one trader said.

July wheat gained 6.5 cents to $4.31 3/4 a bushel.