Wall Street rallies on hopes of economic recovery; S&P up over 1%

The S&P 500 is on pace to finish the week with a 3.5 per cent gain, which would be its fourth in the last five weeks

Wall Street is rallying in early trading Friday, putting the S&P 500 on pace to close out a winning week after encouraging reports raised hopes for a coming economic recovery.

The S&P 500 was up 1.1 per cent , following up on similar gains in European markets and more modest ones across Asia.

Treasury yields also rose in a signal of improved optimism.

The gains were widepsread, with some 90 per cent  of stocks in the S&P 500 higher, led by energy companies. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 272 points, or 1.1 per cent , at 26,346, as of