Inflation fears - no problem, Dow closes 250 points higher

Stocks rose sharply on Wednesday, poised to notch a four-day winning streak as banks and tech carried major indexes higher. They rose despite a jump in bond yields.

The Dow Jones industrial average traded 250 points higher after falling as much as 150 points. Goldman Sachs contributed the most to the gains, rising more than 2 percent. The 30-stock index also erased all of its 2018 losses.

The S&P 500 gained 1.4 percent, with financials and tech each rising more than 1.5 percent. Bank of America, J.P. Morgan Chase, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley all traded higher. The index also turned positive for 2018.

The Nasdaq composite advanced 1.9 percent, as shares of Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Alphabet rose.

"It almost looks like the market is realizing the economy is still doing well," said Ryan Detrick, senior market strategist at LPL Financial. He noted however, the market is "still in the process of carving off a bottom. ... There's going to be more volatility ahead."

U.S. equities opened lower on the back of stronger-than-expected inflation data. The consumer price index rose 0.5 percent in January. Economists polled by Reuters expected a gain of 0.3 percent. Investors also digested weaker-than-expected retail sales for last month.

But Bill Northey, chief investment officer at U.S. Bank Wealth Management, said: "This isn't, in our view, problematic inflation, but rather a side effect" of current economic conditions. He noted that corporate earnings are strong and the U.S. economy is accelerating.

Source: Bloomberg Pro Terminal

Jr Trader Alexander Kumanov

Read more:

• And for all the bounty hunters: Iran offers $80m for the head of Donald Trump
• US service member and 2 US Defense Dept contractors killed in Kenya attack
• Iranian Quds leader Qasem Soleimani has been killed – how are markets reacting
• A calm end of an otherwise loud 2019
• Old but Gold – Top 5 posts of Varchev Finance