U.S. stocks closed higher Tuesday, as investors saw strong auto sales and an increase in factory orders. The dollar dropped against the euro and rose versus the pound and the yen. Light sweet crude oil for August delivery gained $3.84 to $87.57 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold futures rose $24.40 to $1,623.20 an ounce. The Dow Jones industrial average moved up 72.43, or 0.56 percent, to 12,943.82. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 8.51, or 0.62 percent, to 1,374.02. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index gained 24.85, or 0.84 percent, to 2,976.08. Wall Street will be closed Wednesday in observance of Independence Day.
