GDP Accelerating to 2.9% Helping U.S. Overcome Sandy-Budget Woe

Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

The S&P 500 Industrials index, which includes General Electric Co. and Caterpillar Inc., is up 5.3 percent this year, while the S&P 500 Materials index, with Alcoa Inc. and Dow Chemical Co., has risen 3.6 percent.