U.S. stocks advanced, following the biggest decline in 2012 for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, after a private report showed American companies increased hiring and more investors signed on to a Greek debt swap. Equities extended gains on a report that the Federal Reserve is discussing a new type of bond-buying program. Financial and industrial shares rose the most among 10 groups in the S&P 500. Bank of America Corp. and Caterpillar Inc. advanced at least 2.2 percent. Apple Inc. added 0.1 percent after introducing a new version of the iPad with a sharper screen. The S&P 500 rose 0.7 percent to 1,352.63 at 4 p.m. New York time, after slumping 1.5 percent yesterday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 78.18 points, or 0.6 percent, to 12,837.33.