New York  - US stocks gained Wednesday as energy and metal prices rose, despite worries about the fate of a proposed 14-billion- dollar bail-out for carmakers.

Energy shares led the rally on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index as oil future for January delivery rose 3.4 per cent to 43.52 dollars per barrel, Bloomberg financial news reported. While US aluminium giant Alcoa Inc picked up the most of any stock in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, gaining 6.8 per cent.

Automotive shares were hurt by uncertainty about the bail-out package agreed to by Democrats in Congress and the White House, as many Republicans indicated their reluctance to back a deal. The House of Representatives was expected to vote on the measure later Wednesday, but the Senate might not take it up until the weekend.

General Motors shares fell 2.1 per cent to 4.60 dollars, and Ford earned 1 per cent to 3.25 dollars.

The blue-chip Dow earned 70.09 points, or 0.8 per cent, to 8,761.42, while the broader S&P 500 picked up 10.57 points, or 1.2 per cent, to 899.24. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index gained 18.14 points, or 1.2 per cent, to 1,565.48.

The US currency fell to 76.76 euro cents from 77.30 euro cents on Tuesday and rose to 92.75 Japanese yen from 92.22 yen. (dpa)