Stocks finished on an upbeat note yesterday after a helter-skelter session, capped by a late rally that pushed key indices sharply higher as investors snatched up beaten-down shares.

"The market looks a lot better than it did a few weeks ago," said Mr Steve Massocca, head of trading for Pacific Growth Equities. "People are focusing on the significant undervaluation [of the market\] compared to interest rates, and that has pushed to the forefront of investors' thinking."

Stocks had swayed between gains and losses throughout the session as investors worried about the corporate profit outlook, even after network gear leader Cisco Systems posted higher quarterly earnings. Cisco, Nasdaq's most actively traded issue, rose 92 cents, or 7.6 per cent, to $12.99.

TMP Worldwide tumbled $4.15, or 32.4 per cent, to $8.63. The company posted a net loss after more than $500 million in charges and said 2002 earnings will likely miss estimates on a prolonged slump in the labour market. - (Reuters)