NEW YORK, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks rallied on Tuesday as Wall Street digested Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's latest comments on inflation.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 265.67 points, or 0.78 percent, to 34,156.69. The S&P 500 added 52.92 points, or 1.29 percent, to 4,164. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 226.34 points, or 1.9 percent, to 12,113.79.

Eight of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with energy and communication services up 3.08 percent and 2.48 percent, respectively, outpacing the rest. Consumer staples slipped 0.36 percent, the worst-performing group.

During an event at the Economic Club of Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, Powell said that the "disinflationary process" in the U.S. economy has begun, but he expects it "is going to take quite a bit of time, and is not going to be smooth."

"We will likely need to do additional rate increases," as the Fed works to bring inflation back to its target, he said.

The comments came after Friday's data that showed U.S. job growth surged in January.

The Fed chief said last month's robust hiring underscored why the central bank can't ease up in its inflation battle just yet.

"Powell's communication is consistent with another quarter-point hike in March and plans for more after that," Chris Low, chief economist at FHN Financial, said Tuesday in a note. "Of course, those plans will change if the economy unfolds differently than the Fed currently expects."

Last week, the Fed raised interest rates by 25 basis points, a slowdown from the half-point increase in December.