NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks in the U.S. staged a late afternoon rally to close moderately higher on Thursday, ending a five-day losing streak.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 92.93 points, or 0.5 percent, to 17,733.10. It had been down more than 100 points earlier in the day. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 6.49 points, or 0.3 percent, to 2,077.99, and the Nasdaq composite rose 9.98 points, or 0.2 percent, to 4,844.91.
Investors continued to focus on next week's vote on whether Britain would remain a member of the European Union. Overseas, Japanese stocks plunged 3 percent after the Bank of Japan decided not to increase its economic stimulus efforts.
Traders are bracing for a tight race in the British vote on June 23 on whether to leave the EU. The Bank of England, which kept its rates on hold as well on Thursday, said a vote to leave would likely result in the pound dropping sharply. It would also hurt spending and investment.
"This is going to be a big event. Up until a few weeks ago, the markets were pricing in a probability of the U.K. leaving the EU at around 20 percent. Now the chance is roughly 42 percent," said Richard Turnill, BlackRock's global chief investment strategist. "We are going to see significant volatility ahead of the U.K. referendum."
As a result, investors have been shifting money into assets considered less risky in times of volatility. High-dividend utility stocks rose nearly 1 percent. Gold also rose nearly 1 percent and U.S. government bond yields remain at lows not seen in four years.
"Everyone is focused on the vote. It's all about de-risk right now, taking chips off the table," said Rob Bernstone, a managing director and head of trading at Credit Suisse.