U.S. stocks rebound after weeks of losses

NEW YORK - U.S. stocks bounced back Monday after losing ground for three weeks as the dollar's rally against the euro abated.

Elsewhere in financial markets, oil closed at a six-year low, below $44 a barrel, as supplies continue to outpace demand. Treasurys gained after some mixed reports on the economy.

The stock market has stumbled in recent weeks as the dollar has surged against the euro. The U.S. currency has been rising on expectations that the Federal Reserve will start to raise interest rates even as the European Central Bank continues to provide stimulus to that region's economy.

A stronger dollar is a problem for big U.S. companies that rely on overseas sales because it makes their goods more expensive in foreign markets and reduces the value of the profits they bring back home.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 27.79 points, or 1.35 percent, to 2,081.19. It was the biggest gain for the index in six weeks.

The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 228.11 points, or 1.29 percent, to 17,977.42. The Nasdaq composite jumped 57.75 points, or 1.19 percent, to 4,929.51.

Energy stocks managed to gain despite another big slump in the price of oil.

Oil fell to its lowest level in six years on continuing expectations that rising supplies in the U.S. are far outpacing demand. Benchmark U.S. crude fell 96 cents to close at $43.88 a barrel in New York.

The price of oil has dropped 12 percent over the last week, and is now the lowest since March 2009. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils used by many U.S. refineries, fell $1.23 to close at $53.44 in London.

In Europe, Germany's DAX rose 2.2 percent to 12,167, the first time the index has closed above 12,000. France's CAC 40 rose 1 percent to 5,061, while Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.9 percent to 6,804. European stocks have surged this year after the ECB announced that it would introduce more stimulus to revive the region's slumping economy.

In currency trading, the euro strengthened to $1.0575 from $1.0497 Friday.

Precious and industrial metals futures edged higher. Gold rose 80 cents to $1,153.20 an ounce, silver rose 12 cents to $15.62 an ounce and copper inched up less than a penny to $2.67 a pound.

In other futures trading on the NYMEX, natural gas fell 1.1 cents to close at $2.716 per 1,000 cubic feet.