By Kate Gibson, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks rallied Friday to reclaim weekly gains as investors anticipated central-bank moves in Europe as well as by the U.S. Federal Reserve.
The market is “bid up on prospects of monetary intervention,” said Mark Luschini, chief investment strategist at Janney Montgomery Scott.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA +0.83% rose 107.16 points, or 0.8%, to 12,995.09, with Merck & Co. Inc. MRK +3.10% leading gains that included all but two of its 30 components.
Merck shares rallied 3.1% after the pharmaceutical company’s earnings topped forecasts.
The S&P 500 index SPX +1.11% added 14.93 points, or 1.1%, to 1,374.95, with health-care the best performing and energy the sole laggard among its 10 sectors.
Amgen Inc. AMGN +3.73% gained 4% after the biotechnology company hiked its 2012 outlook and reported second-quarter profit that exceeded analysts’ estimates.
The Nasdaq Composite COMP +1.27% gained 34.52 points, or 1.2%, to 2,927.77.
Facebook Inc. FB -11.12% shares slid nearly 13% after the social-networking site offered little reassurance to investors concerned about its lofty valuation.
For every stock declining, more than four gained on the New York Stock Exchange, where 261 million shares were exchanged as of 11:40 a.m. Eastern.
Global equities gained after German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande said they are committed to keeping the euro area together. French newspaper Le Monde reported the European Central Bank was readying to purchase debt.
The major stock indexes held gains after a gauge of consumer sentiment came in just above expectations, as did a separate report on U.S. economic growth in the second quarter. See market stream .
Kate Gibson is a reporter for MarketWatch, based in New York.
