Stocks rose Wednesday as investors showed relief that the Federal Reserve (Fed) continues to believe the U.S. economy can avoid a recession, despite lower growth, rising unemployment, and more inflationary pressure. Investors showed little reaction as oil prices hit a record high for a second consecutive session. Stocks fell Wednesday morning after a jump in U.S. consumer prices raised concerns about inflation and the Fed's ability to keep cutting interest rates amid spiking oil prices. But those worries faded in the afternoon, with investors purchasing some stocks that were hardest hit in the recent sell-off, including retail, technology, and financial shares. In the afternoon, the Fed released its notes from the last two policy meetings, which showed that the central bankers saw that the U.S. economy had weakened, that conditions in the labor market had deteriorated, and that inflationary pressures were growing. In addition to the notes, the Fed released its updated economic outlook. The bankers now expect a bigger 2008 slowdown than their last reported forecast in October. Stocks ended lower Tuesday after crude-oil prices spiked to a record of $100.01 a barrel on concerns about potential OPEC production cuts and a Texas refinery fire. Oil retreated somewhat from those highs for much of Wednesday's session before gaining momentum in the afternoon, with light sweet crude for March delivery hitting a trading record of $101.32 on the New York Mercantile Exchange before ending just short of that at $100.70. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 90.04, or 0.7 percent, to 12,427.26. Hewlett-Packard reported higher first-quarter sales and earnings that surpassed forecasts. The personal-computer and printer maker also raised its current-quarter profit outlook. Its shares jumped 8 percent, boosting both the Dow and the technology-heavy Nasdaq. AT&T and Verizon Communications dropped Tuesday on concerns about the telecommunications companies' profitability. AT&T fell another 4 percent Wednesday, and Verizon shares fell as well. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 11.25, or 0.8 percent, to 1,360.03. The Nasdaq composite index rose 20.90, or 0.9 percent, to 2,327.10. Hewlett-Packard's quarterly results sparked gains for IBM, Dell, Oracle, and Applied Materials. The New York Stock Exchange composite index rose 50.92 to 9,073.96. The American Stock Exchange composite index rose 17.37 to 2,264.36. And the Russell 2000 index rose 7.68 to 710.02.
