Stocks stretched to fresh session highs in midday trading on Tuesday, as investors, encouraged by a batch of upbeat earnings reports, nibbled at stocks beaten to 2004 lows a day earlier.
Retailers were in the spotlight, with strong quarterly results from Home Depot, J.C. Penney and Staples helping to lift Wall Street's mood.
Technology stocks also gave the market some support. Computer Sciences Corp, one of the world's biggest computer services providers, climbed sharply after it reported Monday a 17 percent rise in profits.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 67.00 points, or 0.68 percent, at 9,973.91. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 8.50 points, or 0.78 percent, to 1,092.60. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 23.20 points, or 1.24 percent, to 1,899.84.