U.S. stocks rise as energy stocks rally following big slump

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are closing higher, led by a rebound in oil and gas companies as energy prices recovered from a steep drop the day before.

Many of the top gainers in the Standard & Poor’s 500 index Thursday were energy companies. Consol Energy and Southwestern Energy each soared 19 percent.

Railroad operator Union Pacific slumped 4 percent after reporting a drop in the amount of freight hauled and weaker results than analysts were expecting.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 115 points, or 0.7 percent, to 15,882.

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The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose nine points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,868. The Nasdaq composite inched up less than a point to 4,472.