Wall Street was on track for a third straight day of gains on Wednesday, led by energy and materials stocks as oil prices rallied. Nine of the 10 major S&P sectors were higher, led by the 2.41 percent rise in the materials sector. The benchmark S&P 500 index staged its best two-day gain since late August over the past two days as investors snatched up beaten-down shares.
Still, the S&P 500 has fallen 7.3 percent this year due to slumping oil prices, fears of a China-led slowdown in global growth and uncertainty about central bank policies. Crude oil prices were at session-highs, up more than 5 percent, despite Iran refusing to be part of a group of top oil producers to freeze output. The agreement to stabilise oil production, along with the acceptance of accommodative monetary policy in Europe, relative stability in the Chinese yuan has helped calm frayed nerves globally, said Chad Morganlander, portfolio manager at Stifel, Nicolaus & Co in Florham Park, New Jersey.
"We do not see, for the moment, additional selling pressure in the coming week as market speculators absorb this much-needed mood," Morganlander said. He expects the markets to stay in a tight trading range. At 10:51 am ET the Dow Jones industrial average was up 216.92 points, or 1.34 percent, at 16,413.33. The S&P 500 was up 26.41 points, or 1.39 percent, at 1,921.99 and the Nasdaq Composite index was up 74.22 points, or 1.67 percent, at 4,510.17. Kinder Morgan were up 11.1 percent at $17.36 after Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a stake in the pipeline operator.