Market rallies to start week with triple-digit gain

Stronger than expected retail sales propelled the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) to a triple-digit gain on Monday, maintaining both the market's upward momentum from last week and optimism about the economic recovery.

By mid afternoon, major stock indexes rose more than 1%, with the Dow Jones industrial average jumping 155 points to hit a new 13-month high, and the Standard & Poor's 500 index breaking through the 1,100 mark, to 1,110. At the closing bell things had settled down a bit, with the Dow up 136.49 points, or 1.33%, to 10,406.96. The broader S&P 500 ($INX) gained 15.82 points, or 1.45% to finish at 1,109.30, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ($COMPX) rose 29.97, or 1.38%, to 2,197.85.