Stocks climb as voters head to the polls

NEW YORK Stocks closed sharply higher on Wall Street as Americans head to the polls in a closely fought U.S. presidential election.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 133 points to end at 13,246 Tuesday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 11 points to 1,428, while the Nasdaq composite index ended up 12 points at 3,012.

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Companies that investors believe would benefit under a potential Romney administration had some of the biggest gains. They included United Technologies and Boeing, which do substantial business with the Defense Department.

Energy company stocks rose after the price of crude oil jumped $3 to $88.71 a barrel.

Two stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume was lighter than usual at 3.2 billion shares.

Europe's stock markets also rose Tuesday. Germany's DAX was up 0.5 percent at 7,365 while the CAC-40 in France rose 0.6 percent to 3,470. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was up 0.5 percent at 5,866.