U.S. stocks on Monday turned positive in early trade, shrugging off early losses, as the main indexes attempted to bounce back from a sharp selloff on Friday.
Investors have been grappling with the prospect of the Federal Reserve tightening monetary policy, following hawkish comments from a number of central-bank officials.
The rebound was driven by a climb in defensive sectors such as utilities, telecoms and consumer staples and was aided by paring of losses in the energy sector as oil prices came off session lows.
The S&P 500 SPX, +0.37% was most recently trading up 8 points, or 0.4%, to 2,136, with only financials in negative territory, off 0.3%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +0.22% was up 53 points, or 0.3%, at 18,136. The Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, +0.65% was up 24 points, or 0.5%, at 5,150, driven by a rally in biotechnology shares. The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF IBB, +1.79% was up 1.2%.
Traders are awaiting a speech by Fed dove Lael Brainard later in the day, hoping she could dispel concerns a rate increase is imminent. Brainard is due to speak at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs at 1:15 p.m. Eastern Time.
via MarketWatch
