Stocks rallied on Thursday, as a regional Federal Reserve survey eased concerns about slowing economic activity, while cell phone makers such as Motorola gave strong earnings outlooks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 180.01 points, or 1.8 percent, at 10,192.37. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 19.91 points, or 1.8 percent, at 1,157.41. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 42.57 points, or 2.2 percent, at 1,956.33.
The market extended gains in early afternoon after the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said its business activity index rose to 25.3 from 11.4 in March, more than double the amount economists had forecast.
Motorola Inc. climbed 6.4 percent to $15.88 and Nokia reported a strong outlook.