NEW YORK — Wall Street climbed back on an upward track Wednesday, rising in late trading as a surge in gold and other commodities prices gave investors a reason to snap up energy and materials stocks.
But the market’s closing levels masked the fact that it was a confusing day on the Street. Investors had sent stocks higher until midafternoon on expectations of a bailout for the Detroit automakers, but the market forfeited that advance on signs that the plan was running into opposition from Republican lawmakers.
Investors then set aside their uncertainty and plowed back into stocks as they saw the rebound in commodities.
Gold picked up $34.70 an ounce to close at $807.10 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, lifted by a weaker dollar but also because investors seemed to be more willing to take on some risk — a trend that also has been apparent in the recent rally on Wall Street. Oil prices also rose on the Nymex, settling up $1.45 at $43.52 a barrel.
In turn, companies that make their money from commodities rallied, boosting the rest of the stock market. Ex xon Mobil Corp. rose 2.4 percent, and mining company Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. added 16 percent.
Richard Cripps, chief market strategist for Stifel Nicolaus, said the rise in commodities suggests that some investors are betting on an economic rebound.
“At this point in time, commodities going up are a welcome sign,” he said.
Still, investors are wary about the many trouble spots in the global economy. And so shifting sentiment over a possible bailout for Detroit’s Big Three automakers tugged at stocks throughout the session — including financial stocks.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 70.09, or 0.81 percent, to 8,761.42. The S&P 500 index rose 10.57, or 1.19 percent, to 899.24, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 18.14, or 1.17 percent, to 1,565.48. The Russell 2000 index rose 10.69, or 2.30 percent, to 476.40.
