Dollar a Minor Sour Note in Bulls' Bliss

For stock market bulls, today was one of those green-letter days. But the dollar's failure to follow the lead of equities presents a small kink in the optimists' armor, even if one overlooked by most market participants.

The good news for those long stocks is the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.4%, led by J.P. Morgan Chase (JPM Quote) and Boeing (BA Quote), although 27 of the index's 30 components gained on the session.

The S&P 500 gained 1.5%, owing to strength in a broad number of sectors, as evident in the New York Stock Exchange breadth statistics where winners bested losing stocks 11 to 4. Gainers led by 11 to 6 in over-the-counter trading. ...