The Dow Jones industrial average is back above 10,000 for the first time in a year. The Dow crossed five figures Wednesday seven months after it hit a 12-year low of 6,547.05 on March 9. The comeback by the stock market's best-known indicator is the most visible sign yet that investors believe the economy is recovering from the financial crisis and recession. The Dow is now up 53 percent from its March low. But it remains 29 percent below its peak of 14,164.53 hit in October 2007. The index first finished above 10,000 on March 29, 1999, in the midst of a powerful rally that ended with the dot-com bust at the start of this decade. Stocks then fell below that mark last October as investors sold stocks in a feverish panic following the downfall of Lehman Brothers. The Standard and Poor's 500 index rose 18.83, or 1.8 percent, to 1,092.02, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 32.34, or 1.5 percent, to 2,172.23. Three stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange, where 431 stocks hit new 52-week highs and only two hit new lows. Volume on the NYSE came to 1.3 billion shares. The strong results from JPMorgan helped alleviate worries about banks prompted the day before when a prominent analyst downgraded Goldman Sachs Group Inc. JPMorgan rose $1.50, or 3.3 percent, to $47.16, its highest level in a year. Intel shares gained 34 cents, or 1.7 percent, to $20.83. Meanwhile, the US dollar was down against a basket of six other currencies, with the dollar index down 0.66 percent at 75.475, hitting its lowest since August 2008. The euro was up 0.43 percent at $1.4919 after rising to its highest level since August 2008. Against the Japanese yen, the dollar was down 0.31 percent at 89.42 yen from a previous session close of 89.700. Cheering erupted from traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange as stocks first moved above the psychological barrier.
