NEW YORK, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks traded higher on Wednesday, fueled by a rally in energy shares.
At midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 322.94 points, or 1.12 percent, to 29,066.00. The S&P 500 was up 24.84 points, or 0.75 percent, to 3,322.43. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 17.52 points, or 0.19 percent, to 9,485.17.
Shares of U.S. oil giant Exxon Mobil soared more than 4 percent around midday, contributing to the Dow. Another energy stock Chevron also climbed 3 percent.
The S&P 500 energy sector gained 3.55 percent in midday trading, outpacing others. Real estate fell 0.05 percent, the only declining group.
On the data front, U.S. private sector employment increased by 291,000 jobs from December to January, payroll data company Automatic Data Processing reported Wednesday. The reading topped market consensus.
U.S. equities have posted gains so far this week after a massive rout on Friday, with the Dow plunging 603 points, or 2.1 percent. Enditem
