NEW YORK: U.S. stocks rallied on Monday, bouncing back from weekly losses, as investors gauged the impact of disappointing factory data on potential quantitative-easing moves by the Federal Reserve.
Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Dennis Lockhart said in a Bloomberg Television interview that the central bank remains committed to record stimulus, saying “any adjustment is not a major policy shift.”
Lockhart, who is a nonvoting member of the Federal Open Market Committee this year, also noted that economic data are “still very mixed,” with Monday’s ISM manufacturing report being a good example.
The Institute for Supply Management said Monday its business-conditions index last month fell to 49 percent in its first contraction since November.
The Dow Jones industrial average gained 138.46 points, or 0.9 percent, to end at 15,254.03, led by Intel Corp., up 4 percent, and Merck & Co. Inc., up 3.8 percent.
The S&P 500 index gained 9.68 points, or 0.6 percent, to 1,640.42.
Oil and gold prices climbed, with futures for the latter rising $18.90 to $1,411.90 an ounce. Oil futures finished at $93.45 a barrel, up $1.48.
Many analysts believe a higher move in the 10-year Treasury yield likely hinges on the May jobs report on Friday, with Wall Street monitoring U.S. economic data for any strengthening.
