US stocks on the rise

Stocks turned higher in New York today, regaining most of the ground they lost in the previous session following a bright first-quarter outlook from semiconductor maker Advanced Micro Devices and upgrades of oil services stocks.

AMD’s forecast heartened tech investors who were spooked on Wednesday by disappointing earnings forecasts from Intel and Yahoo. Since semiconductors form the guts of much high-tech equipment, AMD is seen as a bellwether and its outlook was enough to make investors overlook a dimmer forecast from Apple.