NEW YORK — Wall Street headed for a higher open today as investors sought to set aside inflation concerns and resume buying ahead of a speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

Bernanke gave the market a jolt earlier this week when the Fed announced it will start buying Treasury securities to revive lending and, in turn, the economy. Wall Street initially jumped on the central bank's decision.

Concerns have emerged, though, that the Fed's buying of Treasury and other securities will weigh on the dollar and stoke inflation. In just two days, the dollar fell 5 percent versus the euro and 3 percent versus the yen. Oil prices, meanwhile, soared 7 percent Thursday above $51 a barrel to the highest level this year.

So after surging 14 percent over seven trading days, the Dow Jones industrial average on Thursday fell nearly 86 points, or 1.2 percent.

But considering how much the market has rallied, it appears to be holding up well. Since a batch of troubled banks told investors they were profitable in January and February nearly two weeks ago, the stock market bounced off its 12-year lows. Even after Thursday's retreat, the Dow was still up 13 percent from its lows, and the S&P 500 index was up nearly 16 percent.

The question on Wall Street is whether there will be enough good news in the coming days to keep stocks afloat.