Wall Street Closing 2 Washington

In Washington, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said a bipartisan effort is
needed to reduce a massive budget deficit the Obama administration mostly
inherited from the previous administration. He told Senators the U.S. economy
was improving, but it will take time for the private sector to create new jobs.



In economic news, U.S. pending home sales rose 1 percent, according to a
private realty association, following a 16.4 percent plunge the previous month.



Major automakers, including General Motors, Ford, and Nissan, reported improved
January sales. However, Toyota, which earlier this month recalled millions of
vehicles due to a faulty accelerator pedal, saw a bigger-than-expected decline
in U.S. sales.



The Dow Jones industrial average rose 111.32, or 1.1 percent, to 10,296.85.
The broader S&P 500 rose 14.13, or 0.3 percent, to 1,103.31. The
technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index rose 18.86, or 0.9 percent, to
2,190.06.



The New York Stock Exchange composite index rose 93.21 to 7,101.44. The
American Stock Exchange composite index rose 23.53 to 1,836.92. And the
Russell 2000 index rose 4.80 to 614.05.



--SPA

10:35 LOCAL TIME 07:35 GMT NNNN


Delete & Prev | Delete & Next