Dow Jones closes at 7-week high

All Wall Street's major stock indexes closed higher.

The Dow Jones industrial average breached the psychologically important 10,000 barrier to close at seven-week high, up 1.78% at 10,145.7.

The technology-laden Nasdaq index recorded its biggest one-day gain since 3 January.

The Nasdaq closed up 2.63% at 1,769.8.

And the broader Standard & Poor's 500 joined in the rises with its largest one-day gain in almost three months. It ended the session up 1.80% at 1,109.4.

'Worst is over'

"The economy has turned the corner and is improving", said Alfred Kugel, an investment strategist at Stein Roe & Farnham.

"The worst is over,'' agreed Eric McKissack of fund manager Ariel Appreciation Fund. "The market is getting more confident.''

Earlier, trade association figures revealed the highest ever one-month jump in US housing sales, up 16.2% in January from December to a record 6.04 million units.

Investors were also reassured by corporate news.

General Motors raised its profits and output targets for the current year.

It added 20 cents to its profits-per-share expectations for the first three months of its financial year and said it would produce 20,000 more vehicles than originally planned.

Meanwhile, the chief executive of heavy machinery maker Caterpillar reportedly told Barron's magazine his firm may overtake its targets for the first three months of this year.

In the technology sector, wireless technology manufacturer Qualcomm said chip sales were at the top end of its targets.

The Dow Jones industrial average index has been hovering just below the 10,000 level for sometime.

It closed above that benchmark on 14 February but analysts doubted then that it could sustain the rise.