Big gains for markets on energy, tech

Energy and technology companies helped lift stocks on Wall Street broadly higher Wednesday, reversing the market’s pullback from a day earlier.

The S&P 500 rose 0.8% after another day of choppy trading. It was the biggest daily gain for the benchmark index since late August and it put the S&P 500 on pace to close the week higher.

The S&P 500 rose 37.65 points to 4,480.70. The index is within 1.3% of its alltime high set Sept. 2. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 236.82 points, or 0.7%, to 34,814.39. The Nasdaq composite added 123.77 points, or 0.8%, to 15,161.53. Small-company stocks did even better with the Russell 2000 index gaining 24.46 points, or 1.1%, to 2,234.45.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 1.30% from 1.27% late Tuesday. Banks benefitted from the higher yields, which allow them to charge more lucrative interest rates on loans. Citigroup rose 2.4% and Capital One Financial gained 2.9%.

Oil prices rose 3.1% and natural gas prices rose 3.8% as the oil and gas industry continues to sort through the damage caused by hurricane season in the Gulf. Disruptions have been more pronounced than originally expected, and there’s been some oil spills from some refineries.

ExxonMobil gained 3.4%, while Occidental Petroleum climbed 6.1% and Marathon Oil finished 7.7% higher.

Casino stocks slumped following reports of a possible crackdown on the industry by Chinese officials in Macau, the former Portuguese colony and gambling center. Wynn Resorts fell 6.3% for the biggest drop in the S&P 500, while MGM Resorts fell 2.5% and Las Vegas Sands slid 1.7%.