Stocks rise, led by tech, banks; oil near $79

Technology companies and banks led stocks higher on Wall Street Tuesday, erasing most of the market’s losses from a broad sell-off a day earlier.

The rally, which lost some momentum in the final hour of trading, left the S&P 500 1.1 percent higher. About 73 percent of the companies in the benchmark index rose.

Technology stocks did much of the heavy lifting for the broader market, which helped drive the Nasdaq 1.3 percent higher, its biggest gain since Aug. 23. Chipmaker Nvidia rose 3.6 percent and Microsoft gained 2 percent.

Communications stocks also made solid gains after losing ground the day before. Netflix rose 5.2 percent. Utilities and real estate stocks were the only laggards in the S&P 500.

The gains mark a reversal in the market’s overall trajectory in recent weeks. The S&P 500 fell 4.8 percent in September, its first monthly drop since January. After steadily losing ground since it set an all-time high

Sept. 2, the index slipped Tuesday below its 100-day moving average of 4,354. That sends a signal to traders that the index has reached “a good level of support for stocks to trade higher,” said Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management.

“Today’s activity is primarily in response to the weakness we’ve experienced over the last 10 days or so,” he said.

The S&P 500 rose 45.26 points to 4,345.72. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 311.75 points, or 0.9 percent, to 34,314.67, and the Nasdaq gained 178.35 points to 14,433.83.

Energy prices continued rising. U.S. oil rose 1.7 percent to $78.93 per barrel. Natural gas futures jumped 9.5 percent. Rising energy prices have been steadily pushing gasoline prices higher. The average price for a gallon of gas in the U.S. is $3.20, up more than $1 from a year ago, according to AAA.

The rise in energy prices helped lift oil company shares. Chevron rose 1.1 percent and Hess rose 1.6 percent.