** S&P 500 Energy sector rises ~1%, tracking crude prices, which are on track for a weekly gain
** Benchmark Brent crude up 1.1% at $74.06 a barrel and U.S. WTI crude up 1.2% at $70.50 a barrel, spurred by expectations of an economic recovery in China, the world's biggest oil importer, and by forecasts of lower U.S. inventories
** Energy majors Exxon Mobil and Chevron up 0.7% each
** SLB , Occidental Petroleum , Marathon Petroleum , Hess Corp , Phillips 66 and Halliburton are among the top pct. gainers on the energy index, up between 1% and 1.3%
(Reporting by Vallari Srivastava in Bengaluru)
((Srivastava.Vallari@thomsonreuters.com))
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