Sept. 15 (UPI) — The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted gains on Wednesday coming off the heels of multiple losing sessions this month.
The blue-chip index climbed 236.82 points, or 0.68%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.85% and the Nasdaq Composite closed the day up 0.82%.
Markets were partially driven by a rise in energy stocks as U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures rose 3% to $72.61, its highest settlement since the end of July.
The Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF and Exxon Mobil stock each rose more than 3%.
The 10-year treasury yield rose to 1.282% pushing bank stocks higher as Citigroup gained 2.44% and Morgan Stanley rose 1.16%.
Markets also responded to reports that the New York Fed’s Empire Index, which measures the region’s manufacturing, came in at 34.3 for September, exceeding estimates.
September is a historically down month for markets, which have reported an average decline of 0.56% in the month since 1945, according to CFRA.
The Dow is down more than 1% so far in September and the S&P 500 is on track to see its worst monthly performance since January.
On Monday, the Dow gained 264 points to snap a five-day losing streak before falling again on Tuesday.
