NEW YORK (CNNfn) - The Nasdaq composite index snapped a six-session losing streak Tuesday as investors found value in the beaten-down technology sector and sent the index 170 points higher, just one day after it fell below the 3,000 level for the first time in more than a year.
 "Enough is enough. Six days of intense selling has yielded a snappy little recovery for the Nasdaq," Prudential Securities market analyst Bryan Piskorowski wrote in a note to clients. "What started yesterday as a short-covering rally in the futures pits in Chicago has transitioned into some good old fashioned bargain hunting in the techs as well as the broader market."
Adding to the rebound were positive comments from Goldman Sachs strategist Abby Joseph Cohen. In a note to clients, Cohen wrote that equity valuations were at attractive levels, with economic and profit growth slowing to more sustainable rates.
The comments came in an environment plagued by ongoing uncertainty surrounding the outcome of the U.S. presidential election, which has unnerved investors since Nov. 7.
"The election is exaggerating the short term, but it's not the issue. The issue is the deceleration of earnings and the contraction of multiples because prices got way out of whack with what future earnings were going to be," said Terence Gabriel, stock market strategist at IDEAglobal.com.
Intel, IBM and Microsoft led the Dow Jones industrial average higher. The blue chips also got a boost after retailers Home Depot and Wal-Mart reported fiscal third-quarter profits in line with expectations.
 The Nasdaq composite index charged ahead 171.52 points, or 5.78 percent, to 3,138.24. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 163.81 points to 10,681.06, while the S&P 500 rose 31.69 to 1,382.95.
Todd Eberhard, stock strategist with Eberhard Investment Associates, told CNNfn's Market Call that the rally was a result of a severely oversold condition. The major indexes have fallen for five straight sessions.
"People came off the sidelines and started to use some cash. It's sort of across the board -- although it's led by technology because that sector has been so beaten up lately," he said.
Market breadth was positive. On the New York Stock Exchange, advancers beat decliners 1,810 to 1,024 as more than 1 billion shares changed hands. Winners topped losers on the Nasdaq 2,513 to 1,436 on volume of more than 1.7 billion shares.
In other markets, Treasury securities slid lower. The dollar was little changed against the euro but rose versus the yen.
Techs lead Wall Street's rally
One day after taking a beating that sent the Nasdaq below 3,000 for the first time since November 1999, technology stocks rebounded, lifting the composite out of its recent slump.
"You almost had to expect this after yesterday's [Monday's] action," Linda Jay, NYSE floor trader with RPM Specialists, told CNNfn's Market Call. "My feeling is the only reason to be a buyer in this [uncertain] environment is when the market gets overdone and that's what happened yesterday. But we're not out of the woods yet."
Cisco Systems (CSCO: Research, Estimates) rose $2.75 to $53.13 after Credit Suisse First Boston reiterated its "strong buy" rating and $87 price target.
Cisco is aiming to be the No. 2 company in optical networking -- behind Nortel Networks (NT: Research, Estimates) -- by the end of 2002, up from a seventh position, CSFB said.
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IBM (IBM: Research, Estimates) jumped $2.06 to $99.50 after saying it plans to team up with Nortel Networks (NT: Research, Estimates) and Lucent Technologies (LU: Research, Estimates) to offer products and services for the networks of telecommunications firms.
Nortel shares rose 63 cents to $38.19 while Lucent shares gained 63 cents to $23.38.
 Other tech issues also attracted buyers. Intel (INTC: Research, Estimates) gained $2.75 to $40.94, Microsoft (MSFT: Research, Estimates) surged $2.38 to $68.81, and Oracle (ORCL: Research, Estimates) rose $3.63 to $28.38.
Oracle advanced after announcing a business-to-business alliance with Citigroup (C: Research, Estimates) to integrate online payments. Citigroup shares rose 25 cents to $50.75.
Microsoft got a boost after positive comments about the future of personal computers by Jean-Philippe Courtois, president of Microsoft Europe, Middle East and Africa.
Keeping an eye on election uncertainty
The battle for Florida's 25 electoral votes continues, one week after voters went to the polls. A Florida judge ruled Tuesday against extending the deadline for certifying results of the presidential balloting. Democrats, who sought the extension so that certain counties could continue manual recounts of ballots, are planning to appeal.
Texas Gov. George W. Bush holds a narrow lead over Vice President Al Gore in Florida, which has become the deciding state in the White House race.
Click here for CNN.com's election coverage
As the Federal Reserve prepares for its Wednesday meeting on the future of interest rates, investors will look for further signs of an economic slowdown.
"We are seeing a 'soft landing' rather than a 'hard landing' in consumer spending for a couple of reasons," wrote UBS Warburg analyst Maury Harris, in a note to clients. "First, although job growth is slowing, wages are still rising, with average hourly earnings up 0.4% in October. Second, despite recent stock market turmoil, consumer spirits are holding up reasonably well."
Analysts said that the election uncertainty is having less impact on the market, which is reacting more to fundamentals than to who will take the helm of the White House.
"What the Fed will do is more important," IDEAglobal's Gabriel said. "There will be a resolution and we will have a new president on January 20. There's a deceleration in earnings taking place and, whoever takes office, that will not change."
Scott Bacigalupo, trader at Merrill Lynch, told CNNfn's market coverage that investors are starting to look ahead to corporate results for the final three months of the year. (360K WAV) (360K AIFF).
In the week's first significant economic data, retail sales rose a scant 0.1 percent last month, according to the Commerce Department. That was stronger than the flat reading anticipated by a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com. Excluding autos, sales rose 0.4 percent, which was a shade above forecasts for a 0.3 percent gain.
To date, retailers' third-quarter results are down an average of 5 percent from the year-earlier period, according to earnings tracker First Call.
 Also on the retail front, Wal-Mart Stores (WMT: Research, Estimates) gained $1.69 to $47 after the nation's No. 1 retailer reported fiscal third-quarter earnings of 31 cents a share, in line with expectations and above the 29 cents a share earned in the year-earlier period. Wal-Mart warned earlier this month that its sales at stores open at least a year and its holiday sales would not be as robust as in the past.
The other Dow retail component, Home Depot (HD: Research, Estimates), rose $1.81 to $39.19 after the nation's No. 1 home improvement retailer posted third-quarter earnings of 28 cents a share, matching expectations and beating the 25 cents a share in the year-earlier period.
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