U.S. Stocks Rise At Open, Set To End 2014 With Strong Yearly Gains

U.S. stocks edged up at the open Wednesday, working to end 2014 on an upbeat note, with solid yearly gains. The S&P 500 rose 3 points, or 0.2%, to 2,084, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 32 points, or 0.2%, to 18,015 -- climbing back above the 18,000 mark after closing under it Tuesday. Before the open, a worse-than-expected figure for weekly jobless claims didn't hurt sentiment much, with stock futures staying in positive territory after that figure. For the year, the S&P is on pace for a gain of 12.7%, while the Dow is up 8.7%. Read a full story here.