Energy Shares Drive Wall Street Higher

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U.S. equity markets jumped on Wednesday, with big-name energy players leading the way higher.

Today's Markets

As of 11:26 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures climbed 94.5 points, or 0.6%, to 15712, the S&P 500 gained 4.8 points, or 0.27%, to 1768 and the Nasdaq Composite declined 8.4 points, or 0.21%, to 3931.

Wall Street snapped a two-day run on Tuesday after strong data on the services sector boosted concerns over how soon the Federal Reserve will begin tapering its massive bond-purchasing program. However, sentiment turned more positive Wednesday.

The energy sector performed the best by a wide margin. Blue-chip energy giants ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) and Chevron (NYSE:CVX) posted solid advances. Meanwhile, oil-field servicing heavyweights Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) and Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) rallied.

On the economic front, German factory orders revved up by 3.3% in September from the month prior, widely beating expectations of a gain of 0.5%. The data come as the latest sign Europe's economic powerhouse is recovering from the debt crisis that struck the eurozone.

Markit's gauge of business activity in the 17-member currency bloc fell to 51.9 in October from 52.2 in September. The reading suggests conditions are still improving, but at a slower rate.

U.S. employers revealed plans to slash 45,730 jobs in October, up 13.5% from September, according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

In commodities, U.S. crude oil futures climbed 66 cents, or 0.71%, to $94.03 a barrel. Wholesale New York Harbor gasoline jumped 1.4% to $2.552 a gallon. Gold advanced by $9.80, or 0.75%, to $1,318 a troy ounce.