Bank stocks oil prices spur Dow rebound after string of losses this week

May 14 (UPI) -- Strong performances by bank stocks and rising oil prices caused U.S. markets to rise Thursday, recovering amid a new report of unemployment figures in the United States.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped more than 400 points to start the day but closed up 377.37 points, or 1.62 percent. The S&P 500 climbed 1.15 percent and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.91 percent.

Influencing the markets on Thursday was a weekly report from the Labor Department that said another 3 million U.S. workers have filed new unemployment claims. More than 36 million have now filed claims over the past eight weeks.

Meanwhile, Wells Fargo stock shot up 6.84 percent, JPMorgan Chase rose 4.10 percent, Bank of America climbed 4.02 percent and Citigroup gained 3.60 percent to drive the markets higher.

Oil prices also climbed Thursday as West Texas Intermediate rose 9 percent to $27.76 per barrel, while Brent crude gained 7 percent to hit $31.28 per barrel.

The Dow fell on Wednesday by 516 points and had yet to close with gains this week, after a strong performance last week. Going into Thursday, the index had lost about 1,100 points for the week.

Despite Thursday's rally, the major averages remained on pace for their worst weekly performance since March 20, as the S&P 500 and the Dow have each lost more than 3.5 percent and the Nasdaq has dropped 3 percent.