US stocks extended their recent rally on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 on track for its sixth winning day in the past seven as the euro-zone rescue fund was set to get approval from all EU members. Momentum buying, or a move back into equities after the S&P 500 closed on Tuesday with its largest six-day rally since March 2009, was also cited as boosting US stocks.
Slovakian lawmakers struck a deal to ratify more powers for the eurozone's rescue fund, known as the EFSF, effectively ending a crisis that threatens the euro's survival and which has weighed on equities and other risky assets for months. Slovakia is the last country in the 17-member currency zone left to approve the revamped EFSF. Bank shares led the advance again, with the KBW Bank Index up 4 percent. Citigroup gained 5.7 percent to $29.43.
The S&P 500 traded above 1,200 for the first time in three weeks, taking the benchmark near the upper end of a range it has been stuck at since early August. The index rose as much as 13 percent from the low hit last week, and some market participants say the steep rally has forced more people into equities, as they try to catch up in performance. The S&P 500 has been trading roughly between 1,080 and 1,220 for two months. The Dow Jones industrial average added 152.84 points, or 1.34 percent, to 11,569.14. The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 20.10 points, or 1.68 percent, to 1,215.64. The Nasdaq Composite gained 39.08 points, or 1.51 percent, to 2,622.11.
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