NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks in the U.S. bucked a global market slump Thursday as investors look ahead to a crucial Federal Reserve meeting next week on interest rates.
Investors pushed major U.S. indexes lower in the morning following drops in Asia and Europe, then reversed course as oil prices rose. That helped send shares of energy companies, which have been battered in recent weeks, higher.
Traders remain focused on a two-day meeting of Federal Reserve policymakers next week. They are trying to anticipate when and how quickly the central bank will begin to raise interest rates from their historically low levels. Those low rates have been a key factor sending stock prices higher over the past seven years.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 76.83 points, or 0.5 percent, to close at 16,330.40. The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 10.25 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,952.29. The Nasdaq composite climbed 39.72 points, or 0.8 percent, to 4,796.25.