Dow finishes up 83 points as B. of A. gains; Apple's fall hits Nasdaq

NEW YORK (MarketWatch)
U.S. stocks finished mostly higher on Wednesday as Wall Street applauded what appeared to be a softening of stances in talks to avert the fiscal cliff
 "Stocks are encouraged by the idea there may be a deal, which is not a bad thing for Treasurys either," Kathy Jones, a fixed-income specialist at Charles Schwab, said of Treasury prices rising along with equities
The bond market would prefer it "if we don't have a fight over the debt ceiling that might rattle foreign investors," said Jones
Plus, "any credible plan to reduce the deficit would on the margin slow the economy down," which is also supportive of Treasury prices, she said
The Dow Jones Industrial Average  added 82.71 points, or 0.6%, to 13,034.49
The S&P 500 index rose 2.23 points, or 0.2%, to 1,409.28
The Nasdaq Composite fell 22.99 points, or 0.8%, to 2,973.69, with the index hit as Apple Inc. fell 6.4%