NEW YORK (Reuters) - A weakening U.S. dollar and optimism that commodity prices will steady boosted global stock markets on Monday, pushing down U.S. Treasury prices.
Wall Street climbed as investors anticipated that a feebler dollar will boost U.S. exports by making them cheaper overseas, analysts said, potentially buoying corporate earnings and profits."I think we are at a turning point" in sentiment, said Bernard Baumohl, managing director and chief global economist at the Economic Outlook Group in Princeton, New Jersey. Baumohl expects to see improved earnings and sales starting in the second quarter, and some investors are already trading on that optimism. The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> rose 117.52 points, or 0.66 percent, to 17,891.16, the S&P 500 <.spx> gained 16.13 points, or 0.78 percent, to 2,081.43 and the Nasdaq Composite <.ixic> added 42.24 points, or 0.88 percent, to 4,817.59.All 10 of the major S&P sectors rose, led by consumer discretionary and financial stocks.MSCI's measure of world stock indexes <.miwd00000pus> rose 0.2 percent in afternoon trading, overcoming losses in Japan and China overnight.Japan's Nikkei index <.n225> fell 3.1 percent, nearing a three-week low, as the yen's continued strength weighed on the profit outlook for exporters.Worries over Japanese policymakers' inability to stem the yen's rise had pushed the dollar to an 18-month low of 106.14 yen