Visitors pose with the bronzesculpture of a bull near the New York Stock Exchange in New York, the United States, Jan. 2, 2009. U.S. stocks rose sharply in the first session of the new year on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing above 9,000 points for the first time since November. The Dow rose 258.30 points, or 2.94 percent to close at 9034.69.

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York January 2, 2009. U.S. stocks rose sharply in the first session of the new year on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing above 9,000 points for the first time since November.

A specialist works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York Jan. 2, 2009.

NEW YORK, Jan. 2 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks rose sharply in the first session of the new year on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing above 9,000 points for the first time since November.

The Dow rose 258.30 points, or 2.94 percent to close at 9034.69.It was the second-best start of the year on a point basis, or the sixth best start of the year on a percentage basis.

It's part of the classic holiday rally, analysts said. Trade volume is very light, as many investors are still taking holiday and waiting until Monday to start 2009 trading.

GM, the largest U.S. automaker, closed 14.06 percent higher as it received 4 billion U.S. dollars in initial rescue loans from the U.S. government.

Citigroup rose 6.41 percent, as its CEO and chairman will forgo2008 bonuses. All the 30 Dow-component stocks ended higher.

Investors shrugged off a weak economic report that showed U.S. manufacturing activity fell to its lowest level in 28 years in December.

The Institute for Supply Management said its manufacturing index fell to 32.4 in December from 36.2 in November. A reading below 50 indicates contraction in the sector.

Broader indexes also moved significantly higher. The Standard

Poor's 500 index rose 28.55 to close at 931.80; and the Nasdaq advanced 55.18 to close at 1,632.21.