Blue-chip stocks rose for a fifth straight session on Thursday, a runup unseen since Christmas, as a Yahoo! earnings warning drove investors into consumer stocks and out of technology.

In addition to the safer-haven rotation, stocks in general have been helped by bullish remarks from Wall Street market gurus, with the latest upbeat advice coming on Wednesday from Goldman Sachs' Ms Abby Joseph Cohen. But the retreat from technology halted the Nasdaq composite index's winning streak.

Yahoo! told investors to expect a poorer financial performance and announced the imminent departure of chief executive Mr Tim Koogle. It fell more than 15 per cent, or $3.25, to $17.69. Earlier, the stock fell to a session low of $16.25, a price unseen since September 1998.