Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN)- US stocks advanced this week on Goldman Sachs Group’s second quarter profit, better-than-estimated retail sales and upbeat sales forecast from Intel Corporation.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 3.1 percent to 8,616.21, its best gain in three months.  The NASDAQ Composite added 6.6 percent or 115 points to 1863.

Asian stocks also advanced during the week, rising for three consecutive days, led by automakers and mining companies. An improvement in US manufacturing gauges and faster economic growth in China fueled optimism the global economy is recovering.

The Nikkei closed Thursday on 9,475.04, a gain of 1.98 percent over last week. The BSE Sensex added 495 points to 14253.24 over the last week.

Locally, turnover at the country’s premier bourse, Dhaka Stock Exchange, hovered around BDT 4.9 billion on Thursday. The Dhaka Stock Exchange General Index posted a 3.3 percent weekly loss to 2,883.36.

BBN/SS/SI/AD-17July09-8:28 pm (BST)