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Finally, a Christmas rally on Wall Street. The Dow gained 205 points. The S&P 24 points. While the Nasdaq was up 51 points. For the week, the Dow was up .85 percent and the Nasdaq jumped over 2%. Tech stocks led the way after the maker of the Blackberry, Research in Motion, reported strong earnings. After being battered all week, financial stocks also added to the rally- thanks to a report in the Wall Street Journal that says Merrill Lynch may get up to $5 billion in a capital infusion from a Singapore state investor. It was a very tough week for the investment bank- an $8.4 billion writedown in the third quarter because of risky subprime mortgages. Merrill Lynch stock was up 2%. Meanwhile, sources say Bank of America, Citigroup, and JP Morgan Chase have dropped their plan for a fund to bail out structured investment vehicles, due to lack of demand. The so-called Super-SIV was meant to bail out struggling SIVs, or funds that borrow in short- and medium-term debt markets to invest in longer-term assets. Some positive economic data for investors...... a consumer spending report showed US personal spending grew more than expected in November. Signs of a slowing economy- but shoppers didn't put away their pocketbooks just yet. That spending spirit did not extend, however, to Circuit City. The electronics chain reported a wider third-quarter loss on Friday. Circuit City stock plummeted over 28% as a result. Oil was up after that consumer spending report on hopes for increased demand -- U.S. crude jumping over 2 dollars sending prices to about 93 and a half dollars a barrel. European investors were encouraged by U.S. personal spending data which meant the markets closed up more than 1 percent. Germany's DAX gained 133 points, the Paris CAC-40 grew 91 points, and the UK's FTSE was up 88 points. Manoush Zomorodi, Reuters, NY