Stocks held most of their gains Tuesday as investor anticipation mounted over the crucial third-quarter earnings season. Exchange-traded funds, particularly metals and commodity-focused names, climbed ahead of broader index funds.

Aluminum maker Alcoa is scheduled to report results Wednesday, starting a parade of corporate earnings that will be a critical indicator of the pace of economic recovery.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 132 points at 9731. The Nasdaq rose 35 to 2104, a 1.7% percent climb. The S&P 500 finished up 14 at 1055.

Commodities prices increased as the dollar sank. As of 4:00 p.m., front-month crude-oil futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange were up 59 cents to $71 a barrel. The head of Saudi Arabia's central bank denied a report that Persian Gulf producers will price oil in a basket of currencies rather than the dollar.

Also, Australia became the first of the major developed economies to raise interest rates, a move investors viewed as a further sign of global economic recovery.

Gold futures rose by nearly $25 an ounce, topping $1,045.

While there's considerable optimism about upward earnings revisions, the market is at a particularly volatile point. Should earnings reveal the limits of cost cutting and reduced inventory without some pickup in sales growth, market sentiment could pivot sharply.

"I think expectations that we are in a recovery phase are running very, very high," said Curt Lyman, managing director at HighTower Advisors. "The focus is going to be on the quality of earnings. If that doesn t pan out, and there are downside surprises, the herd is skittish and they can turn on a dime. If that happens, the exits get very, very narrow."

The Federal Reserve has indicated it is unlikely to increase rates in the near future. William Dudley, the New York Fed's president, said late Monday that interest rates will remain low for a long time.

For a detailed rundown on Tuesday s trading session see our market story.

Winners

The Market Vectors Gold Miners fund jumped 6.8% as gold reached an all-time high of $1,045 an ounce. The iShares Silver Trust fund (SLV) rose 4.2% as metals prices spiked.

Losers

The big swing was tough on the iPath Exchange Traded Notes S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures Index fund, which shed 3.5% on a volatile trading day. A dip in natural gas prices pushed the United States Natural Gas down 2.3%.

Wednesday s Notebook

Earnings and Conference Calls
Acuity Brands, Alcoa, Costco Wholesale, Family Dollar, Helen of Troy, Image Holdings, Kayne Anderson Energy Development, Merix , Monsanto, Premier Exhibitions, Richardson, Ruby Tuesday, Wolverine World Wide

Economic Data
7:00 a.m. MBA Purchase Applications
10:30 a.m. EIA Petroleum Status Report
3:00 p.m. Consumer Credit