WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have moved sharply higher during trading on Friday, regaining ground after trending lower over the past several sessions. The major averages have all shown strong moves back to the upside on the day.
Currently, the major averages are off their highs of the session but still firmly positive. The Dow is up 490.53 points or 0.9 percent at 52,554.63, the Nasdaq is up 295.90 points or 1.1 percent at 26,377.62 and the S&P 500 is up 73.44 points or 1 percent at 7,665.14.
The recovery rally on Wall Street comes amid a sharp pullback by the price of crude oil, which has skyrocketed over the past few days.
After soaring by more than 12 percent since the start of the week, U.S. crude oil futures are plunging by nearly 3 percent on the day.
Crude oil futures have pulled back below $100 a barrel after the Financial Times reported Iran and Oman will meet with Gulf states next week to discuss reopening shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Bargain hunting is also likely contributing to the strength on Wall Street after the recent weakness dragged the Dow and S&P 500 down to their lowest levels in over a month.
Meanwhile, traders have largely shrugged off the Labor Department's closely watched report on consumer price inflation in the month of August.
While the report showed consumer prices increased in line with economist estimates, core consumer prices rose by slightly more than expected.
The Labor Department said its consumer price index climbed by 0.4 percent in August after inching up by 0.1 percent in July.
Meanwhile, excluding sharply higher energy prices and an uptick in food prices, core consumer prices rose by 0.3 percent in August after edging up by 0.2 percent in July. Economists had expected core prices to rise by another 0.2 percent.
The data has widely solidified expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates by a quarter point next week, although traders may feel a rate hike is already priced into the markets.
Sector News
Computer hardware stocks have shown a substantial to the upside on the day, with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index spiking by 4.2 percent.
Significant strength is also visible among networking stocks, as reflected by the 2.6 percent surge by the NYSE Arca Networking Index.
Semiconductor, telecom and airline stocks are also seeing considerable strength, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index tumbled by 1.9 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index slumped by 1.2 percent.
The major European markets have also moved back to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.4 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index are both up by 0.7 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries are seeing modest strength after moving sharply lower over the past several sessions. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 1.8 basis points at 4.926 percent.
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