Major U.S. stock-indexes increased as a flurry of deal activity and strong quarterly earnings boosted investor confidence. AT&T (T) was down ~2% after the telecommunications company said it would buy Time Warner Inc (TWX) for $85,4 billion. If approved by regulators, this would be the biggest deal in the world this year. Investors are also parsing quarterly earnings reports from companies. More than a third of the S&P 500 components are scheduled to report earnings this week, including heavyweights such as Apple (AAPL) and Boeing (BA).

Most of Dow stocks in positive area (24 of 30). Top gainer - The Boeing Company (BA, +1.64%). Top loser - Caterpillar Inc. (CAT, -0.73%).

Almost all S&P sectors also in positive area. Top gainer - Technology (+0.8%). Top loser - Basic Materials (-0.3%).

At the moment:

Dow 18146.00 +80.00 +0.44%

S&P 500 2143.75 +9.00 +0.42%

Nasdaq 100 4893.25 +50.00 +1.03%

Oil 49.84 -1.01 -1.99%

Gold 1262.80 -4.90 -0.39%

U.S. 10yr 1.77 +0.03