U.S. stocks climbed, pushing the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index toward its best month since 2000, as companies beating profit forecasts outnumbered those that trailed by 10-to-1 and investors speculated bank losses peaked.

DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. surged 25 percent after topping estimates, joining 20 other S&P 500 companies that exceeded projections today. Citigroup Inc. and Bank of America Corp. gained at least 6.5 percent as Fox-Pitt Kelton Cochran Caronia Waller upgraded its rating on banks for the first time since 2004. The market pared its rally after people familiar with the matter said President Barack Obama will announce plans to put Chrysler LLC into bankruptcy tomorrow.

The S&P 500 rose 2.2 percent to 873.64 to extend its April increase to 9.5 percent, the most for a month since March 2000. Nine of 10 industry groups gained after a report showed consumer spending jumped the most in two years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 168.78 points, or 2.1 percent, to 8,185.73 as 26 of 30 companies climbed.

The market remained higher after the Federal Reserve said the “economic outlook has improved modestly” since March. A Commerce Department report released earlier in the day showed consumer spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of the economy, climbed at a 2.2 percent annual pace last quarter.

(Bloomberg.com)