Stocks Closed Sharply Higher, Led by Tech

U.S. stocks closed sharply higher on Monday, with major indexes rising over 1 percent, as concerns over inflation continued to ease on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 399.28 points, or 1.58%, to 25,709.27. The S&P 500 gained 32.30 points, or 1.18%, to 2,779.60. The Nasdaq Composite added 84.07 points, or 1.15%, to 7,421.46.

Oil prices settled higher on Monday, extending gains made last week on the back of halted production at a Libyan oil field and an unexpected drop in U.S. crude stockpiles. West Texas Intermediate crude oil for April delivery rose 36 cents, or 0.6%, to settle at $63.91 a barrel. April Brent crude tacked on 19 cents, or 0.3%, to $67.50 a barrel.

Facebook Inc and Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg have reached a $35 million settlement of class-action litigation accusing them of hiding worries about the social media company’s growth prior to its May 2012 initial public offering. The preliminary settlement filed on Monday with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan requires a judge’s approval.