US stocks finished higher on Tuesday as better-than-expected economic data bolstered investor sentiment.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 123.14 points, or 1.03%, to finish at 12,076.11. The S&P 500 jumped 16.04 points, or 1.26%, to close at 1,287.87. The Nasdaq Composite surged 39.03 points, or 1.48%, to 2,678.72.
The Commerce Department said Tuesday that retail sales slipped 0.2% in May. Economists had expected retail sales to drop 0.5% last month.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department said that producer price index increased 0.2% in May, slightly better than the 0.1% that economists had forecast.
On the earnings front, Best Buy Co. (NYSE: BBY) reported Tuesday that its fiscal first-quarter profit dropped to $136 million, or 35 cents a share, from $155 million, or 36 cents, in the prior-year quarter. Revenue rose 1.4% to $10.9 billion $10.79 billion. Analysts, on average, expected the company to report earnings of 33 cents per share on revenue of $10.69 billion.
J. C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE: JCP) soared more than 17% after the department store operator named Apple retail executive Ron Johnson as its next chief executive officer, succeeding Mike Ullman in that role.
Shares of Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) rallied 29 cents, or 2.21%, to close at $13.43.
European stocks closed higher. The UK FTSE rose 29.67 points, or 0.51% to 5,803.13. The German DAX and French CAC increased 1.69% and 1.50% respectively.
Asian stocks finished mixed. The Nikkei 225 climbed 99.58 points, or 1.05%, to 9,547.79. The Hang Seng index of Hong Kong fell 12.08 points, or 0.05%, to 22,496.
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