Nasdaq And S&P 500 Reach Best Closing Levels In Over A Month

(RTTNews) - After experiencing some volatility in early trading, stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the trading day on Tuesday. The gains on the day offset the weakness seen in the two previous sessions, with the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 reaching their best closing levels in over a month.

While most of the major sectors moved to the upside on the day, semiconductor stocks turned in a particularly strong performance. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index surged up by 3.4 percent to its best closing level in over a month.

Micron Technology (MU) helped to lead the semiconductor sector higher, with the chip maker jumping by 9.7 percent.

Significant strength was also visible among telecom stocks, as reflected by the 3.1 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Telecom Index. The gain extended a recent recovery by the index, which has offset the sharp pullback seen late last month.

Utilities, airline, health care, and biotechnology stocks also saw considerable strength on the day, while energy and gold stocks bucked the uptrend.

The major averages pulled back off their highs going into the close but remained firmly positive. The Dow climbed 139.55 points or 0.8 percent to 17,868.76, the Nasdaq jumped 61.63 points or 1.3 percent to 4,787.64 and the S&P 500 surged up 21.85 points or 1.1 percent to 2,068.59.