U.S. bank stocks rallied to the highest in a month as economists speculated that the stronger-than-expected January jobs report will accelerate the Federal Reserve’s timetable for raising interest rates.
All 24 lenders in the KBW Bank Index rose Friday, led by Regions Financial Corp.’s 5 percent jump at 11 a.m. in New York and Bank of America Corp.’s 4.4 percent gain. Financials in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index advanced the most of any industry as employers in the U.S. added more jobs than forecast in January, capping the biggest three-month gain in 17 years.
