Wall Street stocks resumed their upward move into year-end Thursday but the S&P 500 continued to churn around its 200-day moving average as concern over Europe offset better-than-expected US economic data. The gains nudged the S&P 500 back into positive territory ahead of the last trading day of the year.
Italian bond yields, which helped break a five-day rally with a sharp selloff in the last session, eased Thursday after a debt auction. But the yield on 10-year bonds hovered near 7 percent, a level markets see as a danger zone for Italian government finances. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 101.83 points, or 0.84 percent, to 12,253.24. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 9.93 points, or 0.79 percent, to 1,259.57. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 17.00 points, or 0.66 percent, to 2,606.98. Banks were the biggest gainers along with commodity-related sectors that sold off hard on Wednesday. The S&P financial index rose 1.4 percent, while the capital goods sector was up 1 percent.