Wall Street rose in early trading on Wednesday as a renewed promise of extended low interest rates from the Federal Reserve and its relatively positive view of the economy enticed investors into risky assets.

Government data showed the decline in producer prices in February was steeper than expected, pointing to scant inflation pressure and further supporting the ultra-low interest rates that have fueled a rally in equities.

Coal miner Massey Energy Co shot up 5.9 percent to $53.20 a day after it announced the acquisition of privately held Cumberland Resources Corp, and led gains in the S&P energy index <.GSPE>, which rose 1.2 percent.

Markets are under the assumption the economy will continue to grow, said Steve Goldman, market strategist at Weeden & Co in Greenwich, Connecticut. Interest rates are not impeding the advance.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> gained 39.60 points, or 0.37 percent, to 10,725.58. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> rose 5.61 points, or 0.48 percent, to 1,165.07. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> added 10.61 points, or 0.45 percent, to 2,388.62.

Investors expect the S&P 500 to rise 10 percent during 2010, according to a quarterly Reuters poll published Wednesday.

Hartford Financial Services Group Inc rose 4.8 percent to $28.56 after the company announced a plan on Tuesday to repay the U.S. Treasury. The S&P financial sector <.GSPF> rose 0.8 percent.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will defend the central bank's role in supervising smaller banks, which it would lose in regulatory reform proposals, in a 2 p.m. (1800 GMT) hearing before the House of Representatives Financial Services Committee.

The Dow industrials rose on Tuesday for a sixth straight day while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite hit fresh multi-month highs.

(Editing by Padraic Cassidy)

Ben Bernanke Energy