By Kate Gibson
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks rallied Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 both opening above their record-high closes, after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke voiced support for ongoing monetary easing. The Fed chairman "didn't say anything new, but he did remind us we have a dual mandate, and neither one is close right now," said Art Hogan, market strategist at Lazard Capital Markets, referring to the Fed's employment and inflation targets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA +0.99% jumped 153 points, or 1%, to 15,444.79. The S&P 500 index SPX +1.06% added 17.50 points to 1,670.12.The Nasdaq Composite COMP +1.13% rose 38.82 points, or 1.1%, to 3,559.60.
