US markets rally as Facebook moves closer to IPO

Stocks received a lift in afternoon trading as social networking giant Facebook prepares to make what could be one of the largest market debuts in history.

The Dow Jones rallied 0.82% to 12,736, while the S&P 500 climbed 0.81% to 1,322 and the Nasdaq Composite index rose 0.49% to 2,837. Optimism in Europe and China has also boosted sentiment following better than expected data from China and Germany, and news of progress on the Greek debt swap deal talks emerged. Facebook, created by Mark Zuckerberg (pictured), will file plans with regulators today to for its IPO, which is set to raise up to $10bn, it has been reported. Morgan Stanley is reported to be the administrator, while Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Barclays and Bank of America are al...