US stocks extend Friday rally into close on output oil positives


(MENAFN- ProactiveInvestors)US shares closed Wednesday in the black after recovering output and buoyant oil prices helped extend Friday's rally. The Nasdaq Composite led the gains closing up 2.2% at 4534.06 the S&P500 up 1.65% at 1926.82 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.59% at 16453.83. US manufacturing last month grew at its fastest rate since July in a nod to greater confidence in the aftermath of fears over Fed rate hikes. Meanwhile oil rose above US$30 a barrel and stayed there for the first time in nearly two weeks. The US benchmark West Texas  Intermediate was last seen up 5.4% at US$30.62. In a sign that top investors are sensing the return in the value of oil Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.A) disclosed a new investment in pipeline operator Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI) boosting its bet on the oil industry as crude prices hover near 12-year lows. Kinder Morgan shares closed 9.8% higher at US$17.16. MID-SESSION US shares on Wednesday extended a rally seen since Friday as oversold stocks and energy companies were in vogue on the back of buoyant US manufacturing data and oil prices rising above US$30. The Nasdaq Composite led the gains with a 2.2% advance to 4532.13 the S&P500 up 1.63% at 1926.56 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.56% at 16448.56. US manufacturing output rose last month at its fastest rate since July 2015 - in a sign that industry is overcoming the knock to confidence seen since mid-2015 in the wake of pressure for Fed rates to be hiked. Oil prices rebounded too with the West Texas Intermediate up a hefty 6.3% at US$30.87 - above US$30 a barrel for the first time in nearly two weeks. Among the risers this session: Fossil Group (NASDAQ:FOSL) up over 27% to US$43.85 after posting fourth quarter earnings which came out after hours and smashed expectations. Garmin (NASDAQ:GRMN) up 14% at US$40.21 after the GPS device and wearable fitness product maker beat estimates posting fourth quarter earnings. Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI) up 11% at US$17.34 after news late Tuesday that Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway owns 26.5mln shares as the savvy investor showed faith in the oil industry besieged by crude prices at around 12-year lows. Concho Resources (NYSE:CXO) up 8.8% at US$95.89 after news it will join the S&P 500 replacing Plum Creek Timber (NYSE:PCL). The energy exploration company join S&P500 after Friday's close when Plum Creek's acquisition by Weyerhaeuser is due to complete. Plum Creek's shares were up 2% at US$38.75. And the fallers included: Cerner (NASDAQ:CERN) down 5.6% at US$52.34 after giving an earnings forecast for the current quarter that was short of estimates following weaker-than-expected fourth quarter bookings. Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) down 7% at US$19.79 after second quarter revenue missed by a substantial margin. The oil producer also slashed its quarterly dividend by three-quarters to 6 cents per share and cut exploration spending by 75%. Downbeat oil prices also mean 20% of staff are being laid off. Bloomin' Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN) down 5.3% at US$15.9935 after fourth quarter 2015 revenues delivered below forecast.   OPEN US shares joined European counterparts to go higher at the open as traders were cheered by decent manufacturing data and the price of oil. Manufacturing output in the US rose last month by the most since July 2015 giving more weight to the argument that America is finding its feet and growing. The 0.5% advance at factories followed a 0.2% decrease in December the official Fed stats showed. However the oil price slow down is weighing on the mining sector which includes drilling for the black gold and all drilling activity in the  US dropped 5.9% last month. Spot West Texas Intermediate is up  over 2% at US$29.87 at the time of writing. In  the markets the Dow Jones is up 180 at 16377. The S&P500 is up 21 at 1918 and the tech heavy Nasdaq Composite Index is 59 ahead at 4496. In London FTSE 100 is 129 points or 2.2% ahead at 5991- nudging back to the 6000 level. In stocks Fossil Group (NASDAQ:FOSL) was up over 26% as earnings smashed expectations on Tuesday. Net sales for the fourth quarter came in at US$992.5 million which beat the expectation for US$928.2 million. ---------- PREVIEW US shares are poised to extend gains mid-week as traders await  a raft of US data and the oil price rises. Stocks on Wall Street have gained over the last two days and yesterday the benchmark Dow closed gained 1.4% higher or 222 points at 16196. The broader S&P500 added 31 at 1896 and the Nasdaq gained 98 at 4436. In futures trading the Dow Jones is trading 97 points ahead; the S&P500 is over 12 higher and the tech heavy Nasdaq composite index is over 26 points higher. Macro data stateside expected is the January's producer price index later this morning and the Fed's update on  industrial production and capacity utilization in January. And then the Fed will release the minutes from its latest policy meeting at 2 p.m. Investors will parse through these documents for any clues about the Fed's plans for rate hikes in 2016. In oil US crude - the West  Texas Intermediate - is 2% higher at US£29.63 a barrel as talk of curtailing output has lifted prices. The current OPEC president is heading to Tehran today reportedly to discuss a plan to cap crude production with ministers from Iran Venezuela and Iraq. In London Footsie is 93 points ahead while the price of gold is  also firmer up 0.11% to US$1209  an ounce. David Madden at spreadbetter IG said: "A relatively calm overnight session in Asia has helped equity markets in Europe continue their rally that begun nearly a week ago. "The major sell-off in global stock markets in 2016 has made shares very cheap but previously traders have been cautious to go long for fear of another sharp decline." In company news Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX) and Jack In The Box (NYSE: JACK) release earnings this afternoon.


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