The S&P 500 edged into positive territory for 2016 on Friday as gains in healthcare and financial stocks added to a rally spurred by the Fed's tempered view on interest rates and rising oil prices. The Dow Jones industrial average extended gains for 2016, helped by a 2.7 percent increase in Goldman Sachs.
Volumes were slightly higher than usual on account of "quadruple. Crude oil dipped slightly as traders booked profits after strong seasonal demand and hopes that major producers would reach an agreement to freeze production pushed prices to their highest levels of the year. At 12:43 pm ET (1643 GMT), the Dow Jones industrial average was up 101.7 points, or 0.58 percent, at 17,583.19, the S&P 500 was up 8 points, or 0.39 percent, at 2,048.59 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 22.61 points, or 0.47 percent, at 4,797.60. Seven of the 10 major S&P sectors were higher, led by a 1.21 percent rise in the healthcare sector. UnitedHealth was up 1.8 percent at $126.73, giving the biggest boost to the sector.