STOCKS NEWS US-Energy stocks rise as crude oil jumps $3

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U.S. stock market report [.N] 1352 ET 31Dec2008- Energy stocks rise as crude oil jumps $3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The S&P index of energy stocks .GSPE rose more than 1 percent on Wednesday as crude oil futures climbed 10 percent to a session high of $42.95 per barrel.

Exxon Mobil (XOM.N) was among the leaders of the Dow, rising 1.4 percent to $79.74. Other gainers include land drilling contractor Nabors Industries Ltd (NBR.N) and natural gas producer Chesapeake Energy Corp (CHK.N).

Nabors rose 3.7 percent to $11.98 while Chesapeake Energy rose 2.7 percent to $16.08.

The jump in crude came after a government inventory report showed that while crude supplied rose unexpectedly last week, refinery use fell. Lower refinery capacity use could help drain swelling product inventories as global demand wilts.

For details, see [ID:nN31379709]

Reuters Messaging: deepa.seetharaman.reuters.com@reuters.net 1318 ET 31Dec2008-Stocks rally on speeded-up Fed plan ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Major U.S. indexes rose on Wednesday, the last trading day of the year, after the Federal Reserve detailed its plan to lower mortgage costs by buying $500 billion in mortgage-backed securities by mid-2009, a move that surprised analysts in its speed. [ID:nN31380540]