Wall Street climbs on higher oil prices, quarterly earnings' reports

US stocks rose on Thursday with a broad-based rally across sectors as speculation over China halting US bond purchases eased and investors focused on quarterly earnings reports and higher oil prices.

US crude futures rose to $63.82 a barrel, its highest since December 2014, boosted by a surprise drop in US production and lower crude inventories.

Positive brokerage recommendations on oil majors Exxon and Chevron lifted their shares, helping the S&P energy index climb 0.62 percent.

"It's back to a generally positive mode," said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James in St. Petersburg, Florida.

At 9:34 a.m. ET (1434 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 46.19 points, or 0.18 percent, at 25,415.32 and the S&P 500 was up 5.29 points, or 0.19 percent, at 2,753.52.

The Nasdaq Composite was up 12.79 points, or 0.18 percent, at 7,166.36.

The S&P and the Nasdaq snapped their six-day rally on Wednesday after Bloomberg News reported Chinese officials had recommended halting its U. S. bond purchases, which China dismissed later.

Also weighing on the dour sentiment was a Reuters report on Wednesday that Canada is increasingly convinced U. S. President Donald Trump would soon announce an exit from the North American Free Trade Agreement.
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Wall Street climbs as tax reform enters last lap; bank stocks recover

U.S. stocks climbed higher on Thursday, boosted by gains in technology and banking shares and aided by news that the Republicans' tax code overhaul should face final votes in Congress before the year-end.

A final bill could be formally unveiled on Friday, with decisive votes expected next week in both chambers.

On Wednesday, Republicans in the Senate and the House reached a deal on final tax legislation that would slash the corporate tax rate to 21 percent.

"We have a pretty positive background, investors are focused on the tax deal that they are closed to an agreement between the House and the Senate," said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James in St. Petersburg, Florida.

"It will take some time to go through the details, what that means for specific companies but it's consistent with the general positive tone."

At 9:40 a.m. ET (1440 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.29 percent to 24,655.57, on track to post six days of gains in a row.

The S&P 500 was up 3.14 points, or 0.12 percent, at 2,665.99 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 9.26 points, or 0.13 percent, at 6,885.06.

Walt Disney Co struck a deal to buy film, television and international businesses from Rupert Murdoch's Twenty-First Century Fox for $52.4 billion in stock. Disney's shares rose 1.77 percent and Fox shares were up marginally.
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