NEW YORK: Investors are in a game of wait-and-see with the Federal Reserve. On Monday, they guessed that the Fed will continue trying to prop up the economy, and sent stocks higher.
The major stock indexes all rose about 1 percent in early trading and stayed there for most of the day, before dipping slightly in the afternoon. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 12.31 points, or 0.8 percent, to 1,639.04. It had been up as much as 20 points.
The market’s gains were broad. Telecommunications was the only one of the 10 industry sectors in the S&P 500 to post a loss. Netflix did better than any other stock in the S&P 500 after announcing that it will run original TV series from Dreamworks Animation.
Overall, though, there were few big company announcements or economic reports. Trading was light, with the mood resembling more a holding pattern than a referendum. Investors will have to keep guessing about the Fed’s future actions until Wednesday, when it will release a policy statement shortly after midday.
Two measures of economic data released Monday were positive, though both are considered less-important gauges of the U.S. economy. A report on New York state manufacturing showed a pickup, and a survey of U.S. home builders said they were more optimistic about home sales than they have been in seven years.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 109.67 points, or 0.7 percent, to 15,179.85. The Nasdaq composite rose 28.58, or 0.8 percent, to 3,452.13.
The price of crude oil rose throughout the day, but ended 8 cents lower at $97.77 a barrel. Gold edged down $4.50 to $1,383.10 an ounce.
Pinnacle Entertainment, a casino and racetrack operator, jumped more than 4 percent after it moved closer to regulatory approval for its purchase of Ameristar Casinos. Pinnacle rose 79 cents to $19.64. Ameristar rose 19 cents, less than 1 percent, to $26.39.