Investors welcome the end of 2008 on Wall Street

By Alexandra Twin

CNNMoney.com

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - Stocks rallied Wednesday, as investors welcomed the end of an abysmal year on Wall Street and looked forward to a better year ahead.

All financial markets are closed Thursday for New Year's Day.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 1.3 percent. The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 1.4 percent and the Nasdaq composite rose 1.7 percent.

For investors, 2008 has been the worst year since the 1930s. The Dow lost 33.8 percent, the S&P 500 38.5 percent and the Nasdaq 40.5 percent.