Wall Street rose at the open on Thursday on a combination of an extended easy monetary policy from the Federal Reserve, strong earnings from Caterpillar and solid U.S. economic data.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> rose 43.51 points, or 0.34 percent, at 12,800.47. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> added 2.72 points, or 0.21 percent, at 1,328.78. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gained 10.44 points, or 0.37 percent, at 2,828.75.

(Reporting By Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Padraic Cassidy)