Strong Nike earnings help lead stocks higher
The Dow rose 145 points, S&P 500 rose 17, and Nasdaq closed 41 points higher, as home prices edged up and Greece came closer to avoiding a default
In this June 22, 2011 photo, trader Christopher Forbes, center, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. World stock markets edged higher Tuesday, June 28, 2011, as investors welcomed signs that French banks could give Greece more breathing room on its debt, although worries about longer-term problems with the country's embattled economy still lingered.
Richard Drew / AP
NEW YORK (AP) — Strong quarterly results from Nike are helping to push U.S. stocks sharply higher.
The shoemaker gained 6 percent after beating analysts' expectations. Retailers rose on signs that consumers are still spending.
A small lift in home prices and progress in Greece toward avoiding a default also lifted stocks.
Stock indexes have fallen from their April highs on concerns that the economy is slowing. Tuesday's gain was the second in two days.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 145 points, or 1.2 percent, to close at 12,189. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 17, or 1.3 percent, at 1,297. The Nasdaq rose 41, or 1.5 percent, to 2,729.
Four stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume was relatively light at 3.2 billion shares.