Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Wall Street is resuming its advance on the last day of the quarter as investors grow more optimistic about an economic recovery.

Although Tuesday started with news that home prices sank in January, investors are anticipating better news on March consumer confidence and Chicago-area business conditions. Both reports are expected to show slight improvements.

The Dow Jones industrial average is up 71, or 1%, at 7,593. The Standard & Poor's 500 index is up 6.6, or 0.8%, at 794. The Nasdaq composite index is up 16.3, or 1%, at 1,518.

The major indexes are coming off two days of losses. Before the pullback, the Dow had rallied 21% in less than three weeks.