Rising interest rates bank stock boon

NEW YORK — U.S. stocks rose Monday as bank shares continued to climb along with interest rates, and energy companies rallied again with oil prices. Better-thanexpected auto sales and a strong report on U.S. factories also helped stock prices rise.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index added 5.61 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,429.02. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 129.64 points, or 0.6 percent, to 21,479.27. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks rose 11.32 points, or 0.8 percent, to finish at a record high of 1,426.68.

The Nasdaq composite fell 30.36 points, or 0.5 percent, to 6,110.06. That was a six-week low, as technology companies have been slumping for almost a month.

Overall, almost threefourths of the stocks on the New York Stock Exchange finished higher.

Energy companies made large gains in Monday’s abbreviated trading session as oil prices rose for the eighth day in a row. Companies that stand to benefit from faster economic growth, such as industrial companies and basic materials makers, climbed after the Institute for Supply Management said U.S. manufacturing activity climbed in June to its highest level in almost three years.

“The market clearly liked that number,” said Scott Wren, senior global equity strategist for Wells Fargo Investment Institute. He said that economic reports over the past few months have been a bit disappointing, but “it’s still in line with expectations for modest GDP growth.”

Banks continued their recent winning ways as bond yields and interest rates increased further. Higher interest rates let banks make more money from lending, and that helped financial companies rally last week. Major banks also raised their dividends and said they will buy back more stock. JPMorgan Chase shares rose $1.85, or 2 percent, to $92.75 and Citigroup rose $1.38, or 2.1 percent, to $68.26. Morgan Stanley climbed $1.05, or 2.4 percent, to $45.61.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.34 percent from 2.30 percent.

U.S. factories did more work in June, according to the Institute for Supply Management. The group’s survey of manufacturing reached its highest level since August 2014. That suggests the economy could be getting stronger and that U.S. manufacturing continues to recover after a slump in late 2015 and early 2016.

General Electric rose 44 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $27.45 and chemicals maker DuPont added $1.42, or 1.8 percent, to $82.13.

Benchmark U.S. crude gained 73 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $46.77 a barrel in New York, its eighth gain in a row. Brent crude, used to price international oils, rose 62 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $49.39 a barrel in London. Before their recent winning streak, crude prices had reached their lowest levels of the year. Shares of Exxon Mobil rose $1.37, or 1.7 percent, to $82.10 and ConocoPhillips added $1.70, or 3.9 percent, to $45.66.

Precious metals prices dropped. Gold fell $23.10, or 1.9 percent, to $1,219.20 an ounce while silver lost 54 cents, or 3.2 percent, to $16.09 an ounce. Copper slipped 2 cents to $2.69 a pound.