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New York - Stocks mostly rose on Wednesday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. reported stronger earnings and shoppers increased their spending for a ninth straight month.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 29 points, to 12 292. The Dow lost 117.53 on Tuesday, its biggest drop since March 16.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 2, to 1 316. The Nasdaq composite rose 15, to 2 760.
JPMorgan Chase was the first big bank to report first-quarter results. Bigger fees from investment banking and smaller losses from credit cards drove a 67% increase in net income. Per-share earnings were $1.28, well ahead of the $1.15 analysts were expecting.
Analysts expect 12% growth in total first-quarter earnings from companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 index, according to FactSet. Just as important as the first-quarter figures will be what companies say in their earnings reports about their prospects for later in the year, said Oliver Pursche, president of Gary Goldberg Financial Services. Higher costs for oil and other commodities could be a drag on earnings growth.
Consumers are also paying more for gasoline. Retail sales rose 0.4% in March, the ninth straight increase, the government reported Wednesday. Excluding sales at gas stations, retail sales grew just 0.1% last month.
A gallon of regular gasoline costs about $3.81 across the country, on average, according to AAA. That's up from $3.56 a month ago and $2.86 a year ago.
Silgan Holdings Inc., a consumer packaging maker, jumped 11.9% to $41.21 after it agreed to buy rival Graham Packaging Co. in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $1.28bn. Graham jumped 25.9% to $21.04.
Later on Wednesday afternoon, President Obama will outline how he hopes to control America's growing debt. Investors have been worried about how the market for Treasury bonds and notes will react as the country approaches its debt limit in the next few weeks.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 3.52% from 3.50% late on Tuesday. Treasury yields move in the opposite direction of their prices.
