Stocks Open in Rebound Mode

Updated from 8:55 a.m. EDT

Stocks on Wall Street Friday opened higher ahead of a hotly anticipated congressional vote on the Treasury Department's rescue package for financial firms. A bank merger deal that will not require government assistance and an increasingly likely rate cut from the Federal Reserve were bolstering buying sentiment.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 100 points to 10,583, and the S&P 500 was better by 15 points at 1129. The Nasdaq added 33 points to 2010.

On Thursday, stocks finished with sharp losses as traders digested some bearish economic data and waited for signs that a $700 billion bailout package for the financial sector would pass the House of Representatives. The bill, slated to go before a vote Friday, is expected to pass the House by a narrow margin. ...