In this Monday, Dec. 31, 2012, photo, a trader works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York. World markets registered relief Wednesday Jan. 2, 2013 over the U.S. congressional vote to stop hundreds of billions of dollars in automatic tax increases and spending cuts that risked plunging the world's biggest economy into recession. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Stocks up on Wall Street; led by retailers
Published: 04:59:12 PM, Wed 27 February 2013 UTC
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are rising in midday trading because of strong earnings from discount retailers and more evidence that housing is recovering.
Dollar Tree earnings rose 22 percent as shoppers spent more. The number of Americans who signed contracts to buy homes rose in January to the highest level in almost three years.
At midday Wednesday the Dow Jones industrial average rose 97 points to 13,997. The Dow jumped 116 points Tuesday after strong U.S. home sales and earnings from Home Depot.
The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 13 points at 1,509. The Nasdaq rose 31 points to 3,161.
Home builders rose for a second straight day. PulteGroup rose 2 percent, a day after climbing 5.7 percent after new home sales jumped to the highest level since July 2008.
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