NEW YORK, Feb. 24 (UPI) -- U.S. markets rose Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said there was no immediate plan to raise the federal funds rate.
Bernanke said in a semi-annual speech prepared for the House Committee on Financial Services that bank-to-bank lending rates, at the historic low of zero to 0.25 percent, would remain low "for an extended period."
By close, the Dow Jones industrial average added 91.75 points, 0.89 percent, to 10,374.16. The Standard & Poor's 500 added 0.97 percent, 10.64 points, to 1,105.24. The Nasdaq composite index gained 1.01 percent, 22.46 points, to 2,235.90.
On the New York Stock Exchange, 2,223 stocks advanced and 817 declined on a volume of 4.1 billion shares traded.
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury bill fell 1/32 to yield 3.691 percent.
The euro rose to $1.3537 from Tuesday's $1.35. Against the yen, the dollar fell to 90.17 yen from Tuesday's 90.18 yen.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index lost 1.48 percent, 153.27, to 10,198.83.
In Britain, the FTSE 100 index added 27.83 points, 0.52 percent, to 5,342.92.
