NEW YORK — Stocks are jumping Monday as the price of oil surges again, lifting energy stocks as well as mining and chemicals companies. The stock market is coming off its best week of the year and has recovered its losses from earlier in the month.
KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 214 points, or 1.3 percent, to 16,606 as of 3:35 p.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 25 points, or 1.3 percent, to 1,942. The Nasdaq composite advanced 58 points, or 1.3 percent, to 4,562. The S&P 500 is on pace to close at its highest level since Jan. 7, though it’s still down 5 percent this year.
ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude climbed $ 1.84, or 6.2 percent, to $ 31.48 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, which is used to price international oils, rose $ 1.68, or 5.1 percent, to $ 34.69 a barrel in London. The price of wholesale gasoline increased almost 6 percent and heating oil rose 3 percent.
Chevron gained $ 2.47, or 2.9 percent, to $ 88.97 and Marathon Oil added 56 cents, or 6.9 percent, to $ 7.44.
U.S. oil prices have risen 21 percent since Feb. 11. Still, oil prices have dropped 70 percent since the middle of 2014 as global stockpiles have built up and up. The International Energy Agency said Monday that it doesn’t expect oil prices to recover significantly until 2017.
MATERIALS STOCKS: Chemicals and mining companies also rose as investors interpreted the increased price of oil as a sign the global economy is solid. Alcoa rose 99 cents, or 12.6 percent, to $ 8.86, putting the stock on pace for its biggest one-day gain in almost seven years. Freeport-McMoran added 92 cents, or 13.2 percent, to $ 7.82. Freeport-McMoran, a copper producer and oil company, has nearly doubled in value since it hit decade lows in mid-January.
HEAVY METAL: Quincy Krosby, a market strategist with Prudential Financial, said investors are hoping the governments of Japan and China as well as European leaders will increase spending, and strengthen demand for commodities like metals and chemicals.
“Expectations are that we will see more fiscal stimulus,” she said. Krosby said investors are also in a buying mood because they feel more certain that the Federal Reserve won’t raise interest rates next month.
AMAZON STRONG: Consumer stocks made large gains. The biggest went to e-commerce company Amazon, which said Monday that shoppers who are not members of its Prime loyalty program will have to make larger orders to get free shipping. The move could push more shoppers to sign up for a $ 99-a-year Prime membership. Its stock climbed $ 21.60, or 4 percent, to $ 556.50.
Starbucks, too, rose after making changes to its customer rewards program. The coffee chain said shoppers who spend less money won’t get as many freebies. Its stock added $ 1.09, or 1.9 percent, to $ 58.76.
TIMBER: Lumber Liquidators plunged $ 2.58, or 18.2 percent, to $ 11.63 after the U.S. government said people exposed to some types of its laminate flooring were three times as likely to get cancer as it had originally predicted. Lumber Liquidators has plunged 80 percent over the last year after CBS’s news show “60 Minutes” reported that those floors contain high levels of the carcinogen formaldehyde.
EUROPE: European stocks rose as investors hoped for more steps to stimulate the European Union economy. This week, finance ministers from the Group of 20 major rich and developing economies will meet. Germany’s DAX gained 2 percent and France’s CAC-40 added 1.8 percent. Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 1.5 percent.
THEY GO TOGETHER: “Stock market prices and oil prices have been tracking each other like a shadow through the first part of the year,” said Michael Scanlon, managing director and portfolio manager for John Hancock Asset Management.
Scanlon said that usually doesn’t happen for long stretches. He said the market is rising and falling with oil prices because when prices go down, investors get tend to get concerned about the health of the global economy, and when oil prices rise, they are reassured.
EAT UP: Food service company Sysco Corp. said it will buy Europe’s Brakes Group for $ 3.1 billion. Last year Sysco gave up on an effort to buy U.S. Foods for $ 3.35 billion after the Federal Trade Commission opposed the deal. Sysco gave up $ 2.31, or 5.1 percent, to $ 42.69.
INSURERS RISE: Health insurers UnitedHealth and Humana climbed after the government released a policy update for a key type of plan. According to analysts, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will raise Medicare Advantage plan rates by about 3.5 percent.
Medicare Advantage plans are privately-run versions of the government’s Medicare program for people who are over 65 or disabled. UnitedHealth gained $ 3.51, or 3 percent, to $ 121.20 and Humana added $ 6.09, or 3.7 percent, to $ 171.43.
BRITAIN: The pound fell 1.7 percent as London Mayor Boris Johnson said he believes Britain should leave the European Union. Prime Minister David Cameron wants to keep the country within the 28-nation bloc, and voters will hold a referendum in June.
Analysts say the “stay” campaign is still likely to win, but the prospect of prolonged uncertainty is unnerving some investors. The pound fell to $ 1.415 from $ 1.441 on Friday.
BONDS, CURRENCY: Bond prices slipped. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 1.77 percent from 1.75 percent. The euro fell to $ 1.1029 from $ 1.1135 late Friday and the dollar rose to 112.89 yen from 112.56 yen.
METALS: Gold fell $ 20.70 to $ 1,210.10 an ounce, silver lost 19 cents to $ 15.18 an ounce and copper rose four cents to $ 2.12 a pound.
OTHER ENERGY TRADING: Wholesale gasoline rose 4 cents to $ 1 a gallon and heating oil added 3 cents to $ 1.06 a gallon. Natural gas inched up 2 cents to $ 1.82 per 1,000 cubic feet.
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Marley Jay can be reached at http://twitter.com/MarleyJayAP. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/marley-jay
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