US Stocks Gain Back Some Lost Ground As Oil Drops

Wall Street ended Wednesday's trading well into positive territory, gaining back some ground lost in recent sessions thanks to a rise in oil prices even as Russia's invasion of Ukraine continued.

The benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average closed two percent higher at 33,286.25, and the broad-based S&P 500 gained 2.6 percent to 4,277.89.

The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rose 3.6 percent to finish at 13,255.55.

Oil prices dropped more than 11 percent over the course of New York trading, which fuelled the rally, though Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital Securities warned of further turbulence ahead.

"Today's rally is based on the decline in oil prices, but we haven't yet seen the bottom in stock prices nor have we seen the highs in oil prices," he said.

"For stocks, we are getting close but I don't think we've seen the bottom yet, which means we can have another trip down."

Equities have suffered and prices of commodities including oil have spiked in recent sessions after Russia invaded its neighbour, prompting fierce sanctions from western governments, including a US ban on Russia oil imports announced on Tuesday.

McDonald's closed 0.1 percent lower after announcing on Tuesday it would shutter all restaurants in Russia.

Coca-Cola finished up 3.6 percent and Starbucks gained 4.3 percent after both companies said they would halt operations in the country as well.

Traders also have grown skittish as the Federal Reserve has sent clear signals it will hike interest rates at its meeting next week for the first time since Covid-19 broke out to fight inflation.

Consumer price data set for release on Thursday is likely to show inflation climbing again in February, even before the recent spike in energy prices. AFP)