US stocks recover after Obama speech

NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market recovered from early losses and closed modestly higher Thursday after President Barack Obama’s speech on financial reform contained no unpleasant surprises.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose about nine points after being down about 108. Broader indexes also turned higher.

The Dow rose 9.37, or 0.1 percent, to 11,134.29. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 2.73, or 0.2 percent, to 1,208.67, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 14.46, or 0.6 percent, to 2,519.07.

The market fell sharply early in the day as Greece’s debt problems worsened and on fears that Obama would advocate tough restrictions on banks. When he didn’t, stocks recovered.

Prices also got a boost from a jump in sales of existing homes last month.

In a speech in New York, Obama said the economy is recovering quickly but the progress needs to be felt more deeply among the millions of unemployed Americans. He has blamed Wall Street for helping push the country into recession. Obama gave a speech in support of his efforts to pass legislation that would overhaul financial markets.

The Senate could debate the financial overhaul bill next week. The House has already passed its own version.

Investors were rattled early in the day by news about Greece. The country’s borrowing costs surged again when Europe’s statistics agency found that Greece’s budget deficit last year was even larger than previously thought. The findings pushed Greece closer to tapping loans from 15 European countries and the International Monetary Fund. Moody’s Investor Services downgraded Greece’s debt and said more downgrades could be coming.

Investors sent homebuilder stocks higher after the National Association of Realtors said sales of existing homes rose 6.8 percent last month after falling 0.8 percent in February. Sales of previously occupied homes had been expected to rise 5.2 percent, according to Thomson Reuters.