U.S. markets head up

U.S. markets pushed upward Monday as White House adviser Lawrence Summers said the economy is showing signs of improvement.

Six months ago, the economy was in a nose dive, people were talking about the possibility of another depression, the statistics all suggested a vertical decline. None of that is the situation right now, Summers said Sunday.

In early afternoon trading, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 93.57 points, 1.02 percent, to 9,265.18. The S&P 500 index gained 12.40 points, 1.26 percent, to 999.88. The Nasdaq index added 22.39 points, 1.13 percent, to 2,000.89.

The benchmark 10-year Treasury fell 1 10/32 to yield 3.645 percent.

The euro rose to $1.4404, compared with Friday’s 1.4253. Against the yen, the dollar rose to 95.32 yen, compared with Friday’s 94.62 yen.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index lost 0.04 percent, 4.36 points, to 10,352.47.

In Britain, the FTSE 100 index added 74.10 points, 1.61 percent, to 4,682.46.