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DJI-NEW YORK, June 25 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rallied on Thursday as investors were relieved Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke withstood a barrage of pointed questions from Congress on the Bank of America-Merrill Lynch deal relatively unscathed.
president at Morgan Asset Management, in Birmingham, Alabama.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> jumped 172.54 points, or 2.08 percent, to 8,472.40, snapping a four-day losing streak. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> gained 19.32 points, or 2.14 percent, to 920.26. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> advanced 37.20 points, or 2.08 percent, to 1,829.54. president at Morgan Asset Management, in Birmingham, Alabama.

NYMEX-NEW YORK, June 25 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures rebounded sharply on Thursday, jumping above $70 a barrel, on supply snags in Nigeria, optimism about economic recovery fueling Wall Street and a rally in gasoline futures.

Crude oil futures bounced early from Wednesday's loss on news that a main militant group had sabotaged a Royal Dutch Shell oil pipeline in Nigeria on Thursday, the latest in a string of attacks.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, August crude settled up $1.56, or 2.27 percent, at $70.23 a barrel, the highest settlement since June 18's $71.37. It traded from $68.11 to $70.93.

CBOT-SOYBEANS - July up 11 cents per bushel at $11.96. Led by meal after USDA reported strong export sales from last week. Tight stocks of soybeans continue to boost nearby soybean futures contracts.

U.S. Census Bureau said soy crush in May below average estimates and below year-ago.

CBOT-SOYOIL - July up 0.10 cent per lb at 36.54 cents. Spillover support from gains in soybeans, meal, with additional support from higher crude oil.

U.S. Census Bureau said U.S. soyoil stocks at the end of May above average analysts' estimates, year-ago figure.

FCPO-KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil jumped as much as 4 percent on Thursday to hit a one-week high as traders bet on more orders from India after the government said monsoon rains could be below normal for the first time in four years.

The benchmark September palm contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose as much as 90 ringgit to 2,340 ringgit ($662.1) a tonne, a level unseen since June 18, before settling at 2,336 ringgit. Overall traded volume stood at 13,813 lots at 25 tonnes each.

REGIONAL EQUITIES-BANGKOK, June 25 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stock
markets rose for a second day on Thursday as gains in financials such as DBS Group, Maybank and Bank Rakyat helped push Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia to their highest in more than a week.

A statement by the U.S. Federal Reserve after a policy meeting reinforced the view that U.S. rates would be kept at a record low for some time, boosting optimism in stocks.

"The Fed's decision to leave rates unchanged was unsurprising. More importantly, the commentary in the FOMC statement suggests tightening measures are not on the horizon," Macquarie Research Equities said in a note.

Singapore's index <.FTSTI> closed up 1.03 percent, slightly below its early rise to the highest level since June 15, with DBS Group Holdings , Southeast Asia's biggest bank, up 1.8 percent.

Malaysia's index <.KLSE> rose 1.5 percent to its highest since June 17, with Malayan Banking up 2.6 percent and Bumiputra Commerce 1.7 percent higher.

The Jakarta index <.JKSE> climbed 2.4 percent to its highest level since June 16, with Bank Rakyat adding 5.7 percent and Bank Central Asia rising 4.8 percent.