NATHAN CHENG
U.S. stocks kicked off the holiday-shortened week with sharp gains, as U.S. investors latched on to strong gains in overseas markets to pile into economically sensitive stocks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 149 points, or 1%, to 15452, the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index climbed 18 points, or 1.1%, to 1668, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 42 points, or 1.2%, to 3501.
Leading the gains were energy, health care, financial and consumer discretionary stocks on a day that saw all but one sector of the S&P 500 trade in positive territory. Among Dow components, Merck, MicrosoftMSFT +1.74% and Exxon MobilXOM +1.51% led the benchmark higher.Procter & Gamble PG -0.37% edged lower, the only negative component among the 30 Dow industrials.
Stock futures rallied, as strong gains in overseas markets and U.S. housing data helped put investors in a buoyant mood after the long holiday weekend. Polya Lesova reports. Photo: Getty Images.
MarketWatch's Polya Lesova takes a look at key stocks markets will be watching, including Tiffany and Omthera Pharmaceuticals. Photo: Getty Images.
Utilities were a glaring underperformer. The sector, which has fared well for much of this year as investors flocked to high-dividend paying shares, sagged Tuesday amid the general rush to riskier assets. The five worst-performing stocks on the S&P 500 were all utilities shares: Exelon and FirstEnergy dropped, while NRG Energy,NRG -2.41% TECO Energy TE -2.24%and American Electric PowerAEP -1.47% all shed 1.6% or more
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