U.S. markets post strong gains Monday

NEW YORK, May 12 (UPI) -- U.S. stock indexes climbed to the close Monday as oil prices retreated on a day with no major economic reports released.

The retreat of oil, down $2 per barrel from Friday, signaled some profit-taking but also kept inflation worries at bay for a day.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 130.43 points Monday 12,876.31, up 1.02 percent. The Standard and Poor's 500 index rose 15.30 points to 1,403.58, up 1.1 percent. The Nasdaq composite index increased by 42.97 points to 2,488.49, up 1.76 percent

On the New York Stock Exchange, 2,237 stocks advanced and 886 declined on a volume of 1.05 billion shares traded.