US markets open solidly higher a day after big plunge

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. and global stock markets were recovering in early morning trading Wednesday after a sharp sell-off a day earlier. Still, investors remain on edge after a plunge in stocks Tuesday that was triggered by reports showing slowing growth in China.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average rose 177 points, or 1.1 percent, to 16,237 as of 10:15 a.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index climbed 19 points, or 1 percent, to 1,933 and the Nasdaq composite gained 59 points, or 1.3 percent, to 4,695.

The gains follow a volatile Tuesday on Wall Street, where the Dow fell 470 points in a heavily-traded session.

CHINA TRADING: China remains in focus across financial markets. The Shanghai composite index opened more than 4 percent lower, but turned positive by midday and eventually ended the day down only 0.2 percent. The volatile trading led some analysts to suspect Beijing was intervening to support share prices heading into a two-day holiday.

JOBS, JOBS, JOBS: A private survey showed that U.S. businesses added jobs at a steady pace last month, with construction and manufacturing showing solid gains. The payroll processor ADP said businesses added 190,000 jobs last month, up from 177,000 in July, but below a six-month high set in June of 231,000.

The ADP report comes before Friday’s August jobs report. Economists are forecasting that U.S. employers created 220,000 jobs in August, and that the unemployment rate fell to 5.2 percent.

It will be the last jobs report Federal Reserve policymakers have before their next policy meeting later this month. Some economists expect the Fed to raise interest rates for the first time in close to a decade after the meeting.