Stocks maintain upward trend at midday

U.S. stocks maintained their upward movement at midday Monday on the New York Stock Exchange. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 84.12 points, or 0.64 percent, to 13,180.29 in midday trading. The Nasdaq flirted with 3,000, climbing 31.58 points, 1.06 percent, to 2,999.48. The Standard & Poor\'s 500 neared 1,400, tacking on 8.41 points, or 0.60 percent, to 1,399.40. The 10-year U.S. treasury bond was yielding 1.541 percent. Against the euro, the dollar was trading at $1.2409 Monday from $1.2376 Friday. Against the Japanese yen, the dollar was trading at 78.17 yen from 78.56 yen Friday. In London, the FTSE 100 closed at 5,808.77 points, up 21.49 or 0.37 percent. In Japan, the Nikkei added 171.18 points, 2 percent, to close at 8,726.29.