Stocks Rise on Healthy Data

The markets saw gains today as good economic data and a rally amid financial shares gave evidence that the nation may be moving past the current slump, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dow gained 52.19 points to close at 12,646.22, the Nasdaq gained 21.62 to 2,508.32, and the S&P 500 rose 7.41 to 1,398.23.

Crude oil dropped to a two-week low of $126.62. And investors took heart in the news that the GDP rose 0.9% in the first quarter, better than expected. Mastercard and Visa both rose on news that credit card use is on the rise. Bank of America and Wells Fargo rallied after a JP Morgan analyst predicted falling costs as the credit environment loosens. (More Dow Jones stories.)