Dow soars as oil rebounds ahead of Fed minutes

(MENAFN- ProactiveInvestors) U.S. stocks were sharply higher Wednesday as investors look to end a positive session with rebounding oil prices after the S&P 500 fell for the fifth time in a row yesterday in its worst ever start to a year. 

As of around noon in New York the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 176 points at 17548 while the Nasdaq rose 50 points to 4643 and the S&P 500 gained 21 points to 2024. The Dow plunged 130 points on Tuesday while the S&P 500 fell back 0.9%. 

While oil prices slid further earlier this morning to below $47 a barrel U.S. crude in New York is now rising up 77 cents at $48.71 a barrel after a 4% decline Tuesday. The oil minister for United Arab Emirates said crude prices could recover if non-OPEC producers "act rationally" and curb planned output increases. Traders also took in a surprise drop in US crude inventories which declined by 3.1 million barrels in the week that ended Jan. 2 the U.S. Energy Information Administration said Wednesday.

On the economic front ADP reported that the US private sector added 241000 jobs in December less than the 250000 expected. The news leads up to Friday's government employment report for December which is anticipated to show a total of 240000 nonfarm payrolls and an unemployment rate of 5.7%.

Later in the morning the government reported that the U.S. trade deficit fell 7.7% in November to $39 billion on lower oil prices and crude imports. Economists were expecting a deficit of $42 billion.

Investors can also expect the minutes from the Fed's last policy meeting this afternoon with traders watching for any clarification on when the central bank will raise rates.

Meanwhile eurozone's inflation rate fell into negative territory in December for the first time since 2009 adding  more pressure on the ECB to launch a Fed-style bond buying program. Consumer prices contracted by 0.2% year-over-year in December with the euro sliding to a fresh nine-year low prior to the release of the figures. European markets finished higher today led by shares in London. Asian markets also closed in the green.

In corporate activity J.C. Penney (NYSE:JCP) said same store sales rose 3.7% in November and December with shares rising over 19%.

Monsanto (NYSE:MON) also climbed 2.3% after the company reported better than expected earnings and sales for its fiscal first quarter.

Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) fell 0.6% after the chipmaker released weak sales guidance late Tuesday. Earnings in its fiscal first quarter topped estimates however while revenue fell short.

In other news audio equipment maker Monster has sued Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) Beats Electronics its co-founders and smartphone maker HTC over alleged fraud and deceit in the way Beats acquired control of the rights to "Beats by Dr. Dre" headphones. Apple acquired Beats for $3.2 billion last year. 

Keurig Green Mountain (NASDAQ:GMCR) has signed a deal to make Dr Pepper SnApple's(NYSE:DPS) sodas in Keurig's planned cold drink machine. The device is expected to come to market in September. Shares of Keurig climbed over 5% Wednesday.

Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:RDS.A) has agreed to pay $83.4 million in a settlement for two oil spills in Nigeria which occurred in 2008.

Gold futures fell $6 to $1213 an ounce after climbing for the past two sessions.