NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are closing higher on Wall Street, clawing back more of their recent losses, as the countdown clicks closer to zero for a highly anticipated speech about interest rates.

The S&P 500 rose 1.4% Thursday. Stocks have drifted through gains and losses since tumbling Monday to their worst day in months, as traders hold off on making big moves overall.

Wall Street's focus is on an economic summit at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, which has been the setting for market-defining announcements by the Federal Reserve in past years.

The Fed's chair is scheduled to speak Friday morning.