Wednesday

Stocks posted modest gains for most of the day today then jumped later in the afternoon, led by a sharp rebound in the energy sector following its recent struggles related to the BP oil spill. Exxon Mobil and Chevron both gained more than 2% today helping the Dow Jones Industrial Average's performance. All three major indexes have more than recovered from their steep losses during Tuesday's session. These gains came from strong economic data and a few favorable corporate announcements that were able to overshadow traders concerns about the oil spill. DJIA +225.52 Nasdaq +58.74 S&P 500 +27.67.