U.S. stocks closed higher Monday, as investors hoped that a deal was taking shape in Washington to avert the fiscal cliff. In company news, Bank of American led the Dow, as JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, and Wells Fargo all gained. Retailer Home Depot was the second highest gainer on the Dow, while builders Pulte Group and DR Horton led the S&P 500. The dollar fell versus the euro, the pound, and the yen. Light sweet crude oil for January delivery rose 47 cents to $87.20 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold futures gained $1.20 to $1,698.20. The Dow Jones industrial average moved up 100.38, or 0.76 percent, to 13,235.39. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 16.78, or 1.19 percent, to 1,430.36. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index gained 39.26, or 1.32 percent, to 3,010.60.
