Stocks erase an early loss and manage modest gains

NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market reversed steep declines and ended slightly higher on Wednesday, thanks in part to a pickup in the price of crude oil.
Indexes continue to be weighed down by bank stocks, which remain under pressure due to economic unease and worries about the amount of loans on their books to struggling oil and gas companies.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 53.21 points, or 0.3 percent, to 16,484.99. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 8.53 points, or 0.4 p