Stocks Opened Higher after Strong GDP Data

U.S stocks opened higher on Tuesday, with the Dow industrials shooting above the 18,000 for the first time ever, after an unexpectedly strong report on economic growth. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately gained 54.65 points, or 0.30%, to 18,014.09. The S&P 500 added 5.03 points, or 0.24%, to 2,083.57. The Nasdaq Composite was down 0.37 points, or 0.01%, at 4,781.06.

The U.S. economy roared into overdrive in the third quarter as consumer and business spending fueled the biggest expansion in more than a decade.Gross domestic product grew at a 5 percent annual rate from July through September, the biggest advance since the third quarter of 2003 and up from a previously estimated 3.9 percent, revised figures from the Commerce Department showed today in Washington.

The Commerce Department said Tuesday that orders for durable goods dropped 0.7 percent last month, the third decline in the past four months. Much of the decrease came from a steep 8.1 percent plunge in demand for defense-related items.

Brent crude oil rose above $61 (39 pounds) a barrel on Tuesday. Brent for February (LCOc1) rose $1.38 a barrel to a high of $61.49, before easing back to trade around $61.10 by 1345 GMT.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. on Monday ended its four-year ownership of its metal-warehousing unit, unloading it to an investment firm run by two British brothers.