Chip stocks rebuild strength as ratio nears 18-year high

Semiconductor stocks are showing the kind of strength they have lacked ever since the Internet-driven bull market of the 1990s collapsed. The ratio between the Philadelphia Semiconductor and S&P 500 indexes jumped 26 percent from a low in November through Wednesday, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Another 1 percent advance would lift the ratio to its highest level since March 2001. Chipmakers are poised to rise as first-quarter results pave the way for higher earnings estimates, Mark Lipacis, an analyst at Jefferies LLC, wrote Tuesday in a report.