Monday, March 23, 2009

Stocks jump on bank plan, rise in home sales

Michael J. Sollitto, Specialist for Banc of America, and Traders work on the By TIM PARADIS, AP Business Writer

NEW YORK – Wall Street is getting the good news it wants on the economy's biggest problems: banks and housing.

Investors reignited a two-week rally Monday after hearing the government's plan to help banks remove as much as $1 trillion in bad assets from their books and home sales showed a surprise increase. Major stock indexes jumped as much as 4 percent, including the Dow Jones industrial average, which rose nearly 300 points.

The Treasury Department said its plan would rely on the government's $700 billion financial rescue fund, the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., as well as private investors.

Full Story March 23, 2009