US stocks surge to strongest close in six weeks

An upbeat outlook from General Motors and a ratings upgrade of Sun Microsystems helped give Wall Street stock prices a sharp boost.

A strong housing report also contributed and helped the Dow industrials surge more than 170 points to their strongest close in six weeks.

Buyers have been enticed by cheaper prices following the market's year-long decline, rather than a belief that business is poised for improvement.

The Dow soared 177.56, or 1.8%, to close at 10,145.71. It was the Dow's strongest close since January 8 when it finished at 10,150.55.

The Dow's recent sessions have been quite choppy as the blue chip index alternated between triple-digit gains and losses all last week. The Dow rose 133.47 on Friday.

The broader market is also higher. The Nasdaq composite index rose 45.34, or 2.6%, to 1,769.88 after its fourth consecutive weekly loss.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index advanced 19.59, or 1.8%, to 1,109.43.

Technology, which has suffered most of this year's selling, was lifted by Sun Microsystems. Sun advanced 80 cents to $8.87 (£6.19) after Banc of America raised its rating to "buy" from "market perform", citing an attractive stock price and solid prospects for growth in the second half of 2002.