The S&P 500 was up 0.7% in midday trading to 2,375.64.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.7% to 20,832.03.
The NASDAQ was up 0.5% to 5,929.82.
The yield on a 10-year Treasury bond rose 0.8% to 2.37%.
The price of gold fell 0.6% to $1,251.
AGRICULTURE
American Vanguard Corp. in Newport Beach was up 8.2% to $17.10 and a $503 million market cap. The specialty chemicals maker said a subsidiary will buy some U.S. crop protection product lines from a unit of China National Chemical Corp.
RESTAURANTS
El Pollo Loco Holdings Inc. in Costa Mesa was up 4.3% to $12.10 and a $465 million market cap on twice its average volume. The company runs a chain of fast-food chicken restaurants.
HEALTHCARE
Auxilio Inc. in Mission Viejo was up 11.8% to $6.19 and a $51 million market cap on high volume. Shares in the document and cybersecurity service provider to hospitals traded by midday at more than six times its 90-day average, and have risen 30% over the last five trading sessions.
