Credit thaw?

The market's been positive all day. That, in itself, is something of a relief. The Dow hovered in a relatively narrow (albeit triple-digit) plus range -- the steadiness, too, is a relief -- until it surged to +411 (+4.65%) at the end of the trading session on the New York Stock Exchange.

Commentators are saying that there are signs (too technical for me, with their acronymic flourishes) that the credit markets are at last beginning to thaw.

Bernanke's support of a projected stimulus package (which may be geared to infrastructure investment, if Congressional Democrats have their way -- rather than the tax cut Republicans prefer) may also have helped.