Major Averages Close Near Their Highs For The Session

(RTTNews) - Stocks moved sharply higher in early trading on Monday and continued to perform well throughout the session. With the gains on the day, the major averages closed higher for the third straight session, climbing further off last Wednesday's multi-month lows.

Steel stocks showed a substantial move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Steel Index up by 3.7 percent. With the gain, the index climbed further off the six-year closing low it set last Wednesday.

Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF), Gerdau (GBB), and AK Steel (AKS) turned in some of the sector's best performances on the day.

Considerable strength was also visible among airline stocks, as reflected by the 2.4 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Airline Index. Brazilian airline GOL (GOL) posted a standout gain, jumping by 15.2 percent.

Internet, trucking, software, and retail stocks are also saw significant strength on the day, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.

The major averages saw further upside in the final hour of trading, ending the session near their best levels of the day. The Dow jumped 217.27 points or 1.2 percent to 17,977.68, the Nasdaq soared 73.82 points or 1.5 percent to 5,071.51 and the S&P 500 surged up 22.98 points or 1.1 percent to 2,099.60.