More catching up for KZL as metal prices start surging. Alcoa...

More catching up for KZL as metal prices start surging. Alcoa biggest mover on the DOW.

Dec. 25 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rose, pushing the Standard & Poors 500 Index to a 15-month high, as higher commodity prices boosted metal producers and reports showed the economy is improving.

Alcoa Inc. and U.S. Steel Corp. helped lead a measure of raw-material producers in the S&P 500 up 4.2 percent, the biggest gain in six weeks. American International Group Inc. added 6.9 percent, the most since September, after people familiar with the matter said the insurer halted an initial public offering of its Chartis property-casualty unit.

The S&P 500 rallied 2.2 percent to 1,126.48 this week, surpassing 1,120.84 to recover half its loss from the 17-month bear market that ended in March. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 1.9 percent to 10,520.10. U.S. exchanges closed three hours early yesterday and are shut today Christmas. Trading at the New York Stock Exchange yesterday was the slowest since Dec. 24, 1998, with 319.3 million shares changing hands.