US STOCKS-Strong earnings, housing data push Wall St higher

                                

                                
 * UPS, 3M, Caterpillar post robust results
                                
 * Existing home sales beat expectations
                                
 * Indexes up: Dow 2.1 pct, S&P 2.4 pct, Nasdaq 2.7 pct
                                
 * For up-to-the-minute market news see [STXNEWS/US]
  (Updates to midmorning)
                                
 By Chuck Mikolajczak
                                
 NEW YORK, July 22 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks jumped on
Thursday as companies across a wide swath of the economy
reported strong earnings and existing home sales fell less
sharply than forecast, easing fears of a double-dip recession.
                                
 Caterpillar Inc <CAT.N> gained 2.1 percent to $68.33 after
reporting a better-than-expected profit and raising its
outlook, citing strong growth in emerging markets. For details,
see [ID:nN22131006]
                                
 Profit jumped 43 percent at diversified manufacturer 3M Co
<MMM.N> on strong demand in emerging markets. The stock rose 3
percent to $84.74 and was the top boost on the Dow.
[ID:nN22220690]
                                
 Package deliverer United Parcel Service Inc <UPS.N>,
considered an economic bellwether, advanced 6.5 percent to
$63.93 after its profit rose sharply and it raised its
full-year outlook. [ID:nN21172096]
                                
 Wall Street, which opened up more than 1 percent, extended
gains after an industry group said U.S. existing home sales
fell to a three-month low in June, but the supply of unsold
homes rose to the highest level in almost a year.
[ID:nN22230580]
                                
 "Home sales data was great. On an absolute basis, it's
(bad), but, man, it is in the right direction and certainly
crunched consensus, and that is great news," said Burt White,
managing director and chief investment officer at LPL Financial
in Boston.
                                
 "You've got a bunch of great earnings reports, revenues are
hanging in there pretty well, and other than the Bernanke
bummer yesterday, the mood is definitely looking up."
                                
 The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> gained 215.92
points, or 2.13 percent, to 10,336.45. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> climbed 25.32 points, or 2.37 percent, to
1,094.91. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> rose 58.10 points,
or 2.66 percent, to 2,245.43.
                                
 The Dow Jones Transportation Average <.DJT> rose 4.3
percent, helped by UPS as well as Union Pacific Corp <UNP.N> up
5 percent to $72.63. The No. 1 U.S. railroad's results topped
expectations. [ID:nN22225172]
                                
 The PHLX Housing Sector index <.HGX> surged 4.3 percent on
the housing data, with Lennar Corp <LEN.N> rising 5.4 percent
to $15.09.
                                
 Earlier Thursday, data showed weekly jobless claims rose by
37,000 to 464,000, worse than the forecast of 445,000, although
continuing claims were lower than expected. [ID:nN22228055]
  (Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)