Stocks climbed out of the red to close in positive territory on a day that was otherwise sleepy.

Most players seemed distracted by the ticker-tape victory parade for the New York Giants American football team.

The new issue bond pipeline was relatively quiet after several days of intense activity.

Treasury bonds gave up ground as risk-on sentiment continued despite some early-morning Greek jitters.

The Euro surged to close at 1.33 against the U.S. dollar.

When all is said and done, players should remember that both 2010 and 2011 were years that were marked by buoyant markets early in the year only to see things fade and deteriorate rapidly by the Summer.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke drew attention to the fact that overall unemployment statistics omit people who have stopped searching for jobs and therefore dropped out of official labor statistics; that number is not insignificant.

In the corporate space, the mammoth mining industry merger between Glencore and Xstrata raised some eyebrows.

The combination would create a $90 billion Goliath with a near monopoly on the supply and trading of many commodities.

Importantly, the merged entity would have seamless access to information (supply, demand etc.), every trader's fantasy.

Walt Disney's earnings came out better than expected but top-line revenue continues to come under pressure.

It will be a quiet calendar until later in the week with University of Michigan consumer confidence, NFIB Small Business Optimism Index, and retail sales numbers out on Friday.