Stocks Stage Mid-Day Rally

The markets have shrugged off their morning blues and crafted a bit of a mid-day rally, pulling mostly even on the day.

By about 12:53 p.m., the Dow is trading up about 50 points, or less than 1 percent.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are both positive, but just barely.

Meanwhile, the heads of the (former) Big Three Detroit automakers and the United Auto Workers chief have been summoned to appear before Sen. Chris Dodd's (D-Conn.) Banking committee tomorrow at 3 p.m., presumably to discuss a Washington bailout for the industry (538 Dirksen).

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) will stage a photo op at 4:30 p.m. today after her meeting with Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson and Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke. Unclear if any arm-twisting will be done today to try to persuade Paulson to give Detroit automakers bailout money from the $700 billion rescue/bailout, which the administration opposes.

-- Frank Ahrens

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