US stocks extend gains on rising oil

US stocks kept rising as Wall Street digested a batch of generally positive economic reports amid oil recovery.The Dow Jones Industrial Average leapt 212.30 points, or 1.29 percent, to 16,697.29 on Thursday, Xinhua news agency reported.

The S&P 500 gained 21.90 points, or 1.13 percent, to 1,951.70. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 39.60 points, or 0.87 percent, to 4,582.21.

Oil prices continued to rally on Thursday, with both US oil and Brent crude jumping over 2 percent.

According to media reports, OPEC members and Russia had agreed to meet in March to discuss capping crude production at January levels.

The West Texas Intermediate for April delivery moved up $0.92 to settle at $33.07 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for April delivery climbed $0.88 to close at $35.29 a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.