Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Nov. 24, 2008. [Xinhua]

Wall Street continued its rally Wednesday as investors snap up technology stocks despite dismal economic data.

Apple and Microsoft led computer companies higher as their shares trading near the cheapest level on record. General Motors and Ford Motor rallied strongly, as investors speculated that the U.S. Congress might approve the bailout plan of auto companies next month.

The rise in technology and auto shares helped reverse early decline of major indexes spurred by downbeat economic data.

The U.S. Commerce Department reported Wednesday that orders for durable goods dropped by 6.2 percent last month, more than double the 3 percent decline economists had expected.

Meanwhile, The Commerce Department also reported that consumer spending plunged by 1 percent in October, even worse than the 0.9 percent decline that had been estimated. The largest decline in consumer spending since the 2001 terrorist attacks worried investors, as the consumer spending accounted for two thirds of the nation's economy.

Investors got confidence after President-elect Barack Obama pledged he would have a plan to deal with the nation's economic crisis on his first day in office.

The Dow industrials rose 247.14, or 2.91 percent, 8,726.61. The S&P 500 advanced 30.29, or 3.53 percent, to 887.68. The Nasdaq composite index rose 67.37, or 4.60 percent, to 1,532.10.

(Xinhua News Agency November 27, 2008)