TORONTO - North American stock markets moved higher in late-morning trading, regaining some of the ground lost in recent days as investors sold off stocks amid concerns about the impact of the novel coronavirus outbreak.

The S&P/TSX composite index was up 84.39 points at 17,261.76.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 360.29 points at 27,441.65. The S&P 500 index was up 41.06 points at 3,169.27, while the Nasdaq composite was up 142.01 points at 9,107.62.

The Canadian dollar traded for 75.13 cents US compared with an average of 75.30 cents US on Tuesday.

The April crude contract was up 14 cents at US$50.04 per barrel and the April natural gas contract was up 2.4 cents at US$1.88 per mmBTU.

The April gold contract was down US$9.90 at US$1,640.10 an ounce and the May copper contract was down 0.85 of a cent at US$2.57 a pound.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 26, 2020.