Indexes spiked higher in midday trading on comments by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell that interest rates are near-neutral, neither spurring nor hindering economic growth.
The S&P 500 was up 1.4% to 2,719.98, the Dow Jones Industrial Average 1.7% to 25,173.52, the Nasdaq 1.7% to 7,204.71.
The yield on a 10-year Treasury bond rose 0.3% to 3.06%.
The price of gold was 0.7% higher to $1,222.
RESTAURANTS
Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) was up 4% to $492 and a $13.7 billion market cap. A Piper Jaffray analyst recently praised restaurant stocks, specifically pointing out the Newport Beach-based fast-casual restaurant chain.
HEALTHCARE
Masimo Corp. (Nasdaq: MASI) in Irvine was up 4% to $109.13 and a $5.7 billion market cap. Shares in the medical device maker are up about 22% on the year.
