NEW YORK, Dec 13: US stocks recouped early losses and ended higher on Friday as traders looked past weak economic news and drew encouragement from a White House pledge to stave off the collapse of Detroit automakers.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 64.59 points (0.75 per cent) to close at 8,629.68, shaking off early losses of some 200 points.

The Nasdaq composite rallied 32.84 points (2.64 per cent) to 1,540.72 and the broad Standard & Poor’s 500 added 6.14 points (0.70 per cent) to 879.73.—AFP