Bulls were off to the races on Tuesday after two new signs suggested that the economy was not only improving, it was looking downright robust.

Before the bell, UPS ignited stock market gains after the company forecast record profits for 2011. Also, the latest ISM data cheered investors after it showed the U.S. manufacturing sector grew at its fastest pace in nearly seven years.

The results ignited a triple digit gain in the Dow and pushed the blue chip index to a close above the psychologically important 12,000 level for the first time since June 2008. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 closed above 1,300 for the first time since August 2008.