CLOSING BELL

Dow 10583.96  +155.91, Nasdaq 2308.42  +39.27,S&P 1132.99  +17.89 

What a way to kick off the New Year, all three major indices rallied to new 52 week highs.

Stocks spent the whole day in positive territory helped by a weaker dollar and a better than expected ISM Manufacturing report.  The ISM Manufacturing Index for December came in at 55.9, which is above the 54.3 that had been expected. The December reading is also above the 53.6 for November.

The market also ignored a worse than expected Construction spending report.  Construction spending for November decreased -0.6% month-over-month, but that was weaker than the -0.5% decrease that had been widely forecast. Construction spending for October was revised downward to reflect a decrease of -0.5%.

With the dollar down -0.4% against a basket of foreign currencies, the CRB Commodity Index advanced +2.1%. Crude oil prices climbed +2.7% to $81.51 per barrel.  This was the first time that oil broke the $80 per barrel barrier since last November.  Meanwhile, precious metals prices, as a group, gained +3.1% and Gold ended the day at 1121.0 +24.80.

Energy stocks and materials stocks were the big gainers today.  The two sectors both advanced 2.8% with help from both the broader market and higher commodity prices.

The Mosaic Company (MOS) 61.71 +1.98 +3.31% will report earnings after the market close.  Analyst estimates are $0.35 per share.

The WSJ is reporting that Apple (AAPL) 214.01 +3.27 will announce its new tablet computer this month. The tablet will have a 10"-11" screen and will be available in March.

 Advancing Sectors: Materials (+2.8%), Energy (+2.8%), Financials (+2.1%), Industrials (+1.7%), Tech (+1.6%), Telecom (+1.6%), Health Care (+1.4%), Consumer Staples (+1.0%), Consumer Discretionary (+0.6%), Utilities (+0.2%)

Declining Sectors: (None)