Roundup: U.S. stocks extend gains following upbeat ADP report

U.S. stocks ended higher Wednesday after wavering in a tight range, as Wall Street digested a better-than-expected ADP employment report ahead of Friday's key jobs report.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 34.24 points, or 0.20 percent, to 16,899.32. The S&P 500 increased 8.10 points, or 0.41 percent, to 1,986.45. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 13.83 points, or 0.29 percent, to 4,703.42.

On the economic front, U.S. private sector employment increased, on a seasonally adjusted basis, by 214,000 jobs from January to February, well above market consensus of 185,000, according to the ADP National Employment Report released Wednesday.

The ADP figure is followed closely as a pre-indicator for the non-farm payrolls report due Friday.

"That said, strength in service sector hiring will alleviate fears the February (jobs) report this Friday will disappoint," said Jay Morelock, an economist at FTN Financial, in a note.

Traders were also looking to the key monthly employment data and more hints on future monetary policy from the U.S. Federal Reserve's March meeting.

On Tuesday, U.S. stocks posted solid gains, with all three major indices jumping over 2 percent, as Wall Street cheered over a batch of upbeat economic reports.

Overseas, Chinese shares prolonged Tuesday's rally and surged past the 2,800-point mark on Wednesday, led by real estate stocks. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 4.26 percent to close at 2,849.68 points.

European equities closed mostly higher Wednesday as oil kept rising. German benchmark DAX index at Frankfurt Stock Exchange moved up 0.61 percent, while French benchmark index CAC 40 increased 0.41 percent.

The CBOE Volatility Index, often referred to as Wall Street's fear gauge, decreased 3.45 percent to end at 17.09 on Wednesday.

In other markets, oil prices rose as data showed U.S. oil production continued to drop.

The West Texas Intermediate for April delivery moved up 26 cents to settle at 34.66 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for May delivery increased 12 cents to close at 36.93 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.

The U.S. dollar decreased against most major peers despite positive jobs data from the country.

In late New York trading, the euro rose to 1.0866 dollars from 1.0865 dollars in the previous session, while the dollar bought 113.46 Japanese yen, lower than 114.06 yen of the previous session.

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose as U.S. equities fell slightly in the early trading despite positive U.S. data.

The most active gold contract for April delivery added 11 U.S. dollars, or 0.89 percent, to settle at 1,241.80 dollars per ounce. Endit