Dow closes above 11,000 for first time in 18 months

NEW YORK - The Dow Jones industrial average has closed above 11,000 for the first time in a year and a half on investors' rising hopes about the economy.

The Dow edged up about 9 points Monday to almost 11,006. The Standard & Poor's 500 index came within a point of hitting its own milestone of 1,200 during trading but closed just short of that mark.

Stocks have been rising this year on growing expectations that the economy will shake off job market weakness and housing problems. A test of whether the Dow can hold the 11,000 mark will come in the next three weeks, as companies report earnings.

On Monday, a loan agreement for Greece allowed U.S. investors to focus on domestic economic and corporate news, including announcements of two big deals.

European Union leaders agreed over the weekend to make loans available to Greece to help the country lower its public debt burden. The 16 countries that use the euro agreed to provide $40.5 billion to Greece if needed. The International Monetary Fund could contribute another $13.5 billion.

Investors have been concerned that mounting debt in Greece and other European nations including Spain and Portugal would stunt a global recovery.

Meanwhile, the latest round of corporate dealmaking signaled that business leaders are more confident about a recovery.

Mirant Corp. agreed to acquire rival power company RRI Energy Inc. for $1.61 billion, while the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management is buying DynCorp International, a provider of support services to U.S. national security operations, for $1 billion.

The Dow rose 8.62, or 0.1 percent, to 11,005.97. It was the Dow's first close above 11,000 since Sept. 26, 2008. The index climbed above 11,000 in the final moments of trading Friday before falling back.

The broader S&P 500 index rose 2.11, or 0.2 percent, to 1,196.48. It traded as high as 1,199.20. It hasn't topped 1,200 since September 2008.

The Nasdaq composite index rose 3.82, or 0.2 percent, to 2,457.87.

Reports on inflation, retail sales, manufacturing and housing will be released next week. Intel Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America Corp., Google Inc. and General Electric Co. are slated to report earnings this week.

Alcoa Inc., the first of the Dow industrials to report first-quarter earnings, said late Monday it had a smaller loss than during the first three months of last year. But the aluminum company's revenue fell short of expectations, and its stock fell 6 cents to $14.51 in after-hours activity. Alcoa was up 18 cents to $14.57 during regular trading.

Mirant rose $1.95, or 18.2 percent, to $12.68, while RRI rose 58 cents, or 14.7 percent, to $4.53. DynCorp surged $5.66, or 48.2 percent, to $17.41.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 2.11, or 0.3 percent, to 705.06.

Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.1 percent, Germany's DAX index rose less than 0.1 percent, and France's CAC-40 slipped less than 0.1 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.4 percent.