The Dow Jones ended higher yesterday, surging ahead late in the session as it hitched a ride on the long bond rally which soothed investor interest rate jitters.

"People are fearing that rates are going up, but if the bond market rallies back, that fear subsides," said Mr Tony Dwyer, chief market strategist at Ladenburg Thalmann.

The Dow closed just 31 points short of its May 4th record of 9192.66. The bellweather 30-year Treasury bond soared , pushing the yield back below the key 6 per cent level breached on Monday. The long bond was up 7/8 to yield 5.97 per cent. Treasuries shot higher on rekindled worries about Asian financial stability, with rumours focused on the Hong Kong dollar in particular.

Stocks traded in a narrow range for most of the day as investors waited for wholesale price inflation data, due today, and consumer price inflation on Thursday.