Wall Street soared on Wednesday as surging oil prices boosted energy stocks following US President Donald Trump’s decision the previous day to quit a nuclear agreement with Iran.
The S&P energy index jumped 2.03 per cent, bringing its gain this quarter to 12.6 per cent, more than any other sector.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.75 per cent to end at 24,542.54 points, while the S&P 500 gained 0.97 per cent to 2,697.79.
The Nasdaq Composite added 1.0 per cent to finish the session at 7,339.91, reports Reuters.
The Cboe Volatility Index, the most widely followed barometer of expected near-term volatility for the S&P 500, closed down 1.29 points at 13.42, its lowest close since Jan. 26.
Google-owner Alphabet Inc rose 2.87 per cent, providing more lift than any other stock to the S&P 500. It was followed by Facebook Inc, which rose 2.09 per cent.
Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.71-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.65-to-1 ratio favoured advancers.
The S&P 500 posted 40 new 52-week highs and 11 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 168 new highs and 52 new lows.
Volume on US exchanges was 7.1 billion shares, compared with the 6.6 billion-share average over the last 20 trading days.