Energy sector leads stocks up as oil hits record : US Business

By Walker Simon

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose on Monday as record crude oil prices lifted energy shares on the final trading day of the month and the second quarter, offsetting a financial sector sell-off on fears of further credit losses.

Bellwether energy stocks Exxon and Chevron both rose more than 1 percent and ranked among the Dow's biggest top-weighted gainers. An oil index <.OIX> shot up 1.6 percent.

Oil jumped to a record of $143.67 a barrel in late morning trading and then pulled back from that intraday peak to trade at $140.54, up 33 cents.

Adding to investors' nervousness about banks were comments from the CEO of the Bank of New York Mellon Corp , who said he expected further losses from the sector and noted that he believes the U.S. housing market crisis could continue for some time. His bank's stock lost 0.5 percent to $38.45.

The S&P financial index <.GSPF> dropped 0.4 percent, while shares of insurer American International Group and Citigroup , the largest U.S. bank, ranked as the two heaviest weights on the S&P 500. AIG also led the list of the Dow's top-weighted decliners, helping to curb the blue-chip average's gain.

"Basically you have a massive sell-off through June and in the absence of additional negative news, the stock market is getting a breather," said David Katz, chief investment officer at Matrix Asset Advisors in New York.

"Financials are still weak," he added. "Perhaps people don't want them to show on their books" as investors close their books for the quarter.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> rose 75.32 points, or 0.67 percent, to 11,421.83. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> gained 10.25 points, or 0.80 percent, to 1,288.63. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> added 2.08 points, or 0.09 percent, to 2,317.71.

Wal-Mart shares gained 2.6 percent to $57.77, boosting the Dow and the S&P, after UBS increased its price target on the huge discount retailer's stock.

Exxon Mobil Corp rose 1.5 percent to $87.84 and Chevron Corp climbed 1.5 percent to $99.22, both on the New York Stock Exchange.

On the Nasdaq, Internet giant Google rose 0.6 percent to $531.23 after Citigroup added the stock to its top picks live list.

Shares of AIG fell 4 percent to $26.61 and Citigroup declined 2.4 percent to $16.85.

On the economic front, a report showed business activity in the U.S. Midwest contracted in June for a fifth straight month but it was not as weak as analysts feared.

Another report showed the downturn in New York City business activity continued in June after May's brief pause.

(Editing by Jan Paschal)

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