US stocks rise on strong economic data

It’s only been a day, but November on Wall Street is already looking a lot better than October. Positive signs about the job market and soaring sales figures pushed stock futures up before the market opened. A half-hour into trading, reports on manufacturing and consumer confidence added another log to the fire.

The Dow Jones industrial average had already risen 100 points when the mid-morning reports came out. The data—including news that manufacturing grew for the second straight month—pushed it up as much as 177 points. It fell back some, but held a steady gain for the rest of the day.

The Dow closed up 136.16 points, or one per cent, to close at 13,232.62. It was the best day for the Dow since September 13. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 15.43 points, or 1.1 per cent, to 1,427.59. The Nasdaq composite index added 42.83, or 1.4 per cent, to 3,020.06. All three indexes fell in October, their first monthly losses since May.