U.S. stocks surged on Tuesday as the latest string of corporate earnings and a comeback in Apple shares helped boost confidence.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 194.13 points, or 1.50 percent, at 13,115.54, its first closing above 13,000 since April 5.

The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 21.21 points, or 1.55 percent, to 1,390.78, its best gain since March 13.

The Nasdaq Composite Index reclaimed the key psychological level of 3,000, rallying 54.42 points, or 1.82 percent, to 3,042. 82.

The gain came after a string of companies reported better-than- expected earnings.

Goldman Sachs released earnings for the first quarter, beating Wall Street's estimates thanks to the better performance in the equity markets.

The giant investment bank said it would raise its quarterly dividend to 46 cents per share from 35 cents.

Until now, all earnings of biggest banks including Wells Fargo, Citigroup and JPMorgan beat the Street's estimates, showing an improvement in the U.S. financial system.

Coca-Cola also reported strong first-quarter 2012 results on Tuesday, with growth across every geographic operating group.

According to its report, Coca-Cola's earnings rose 7.9 percent in the first quarter as revenue increased nearly 6 percent, with higher prices and a shift in the mix of product sold contributing about half of the sales increase.

Also, Apple staged an astonishing comeback, surging more than 5 percent, after seeing its market value evaporated 50 billion in the last five losing sessions, giving major averages, especially the tech-heavy Nasdaq, a strong boost.

News from Europe was also relieving on Tuesday. Germany's investor sentiment surprisingly rose for a fifth straight month, according to a survey. And Spain's bond auction met stronger demand than expected, indicating improving confidence in the debt- burdened country's finance health.

On the economic front, industrial production was unchanged in March for a second month. However, the reading increased at an annual rate of 5.4 percent in the first quarter of 2012.

Meanwhile, manufacturing output declined 0.2 percent in March but still jumped 10.4 percent at an annual rate in the first quarter.

In other markets, the U.S. dollar fell against its major counterparts in late New York trading while oil prices gained on increasing risk appetite.

Light, sweet crude for May delivery gained 1.27 dollars, or 1. 23 percent, to settle at 104.20 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.