US stocks rise, even as the bond market applies more pressure

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are rising Friday and trimming their losses from what’s been a shaky week. That's even though the bond market, which has been the center of Wall Street’s action, remains jumpy and continues to add pressure.

The S&P 500 rose 0.5% and is on track for just its second gain in the six days since setting its all-time high last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 562 points, or 1.1%, with an hour remaining in trading, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.5% higher.

Ross Stores helped lead the way and climbed 4.8% after reporting stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. CEO Jim Conroy said it saw both an increase in new customers and more interest from existing customers, while the off-price retailer at the same time benefited from refunds on tariffs.

Most U.S. companies have reported bigger profits for the spring than analysts expected, which has helped drive the stock market’s run to records recently. Stock prices tend to follow the path of corporate profits over the long term, and strong growth can offset a lot of worries for investors.

The other big lever that helps set stock prices is interest rates, which have been much shakier.

After soaring through the summer and then hesitating following this week's surprise move by the U.S. Treasury Department to repurchase more U.S. government bonds, yields climbed further on Friday.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.73% from 4.69% late Thursday. It's back above its level before the Treasury market made its move, which analysts said at the time would likely have only a temporary effect. The 30-year Treasury yield, which the Fed is also targeting with its bond repurchases, also rose and is near its highest level since 2007.