U.S. Stocks Move Modestly Higher After Seeing Initial Weakness

After moving to the downside at the start of trading on Tuesday, stocks have rebounded over the course of the morning. The major averages have bounced well off their early lows and into positive territory, with the S&P 500 reaching a new record intraday high.

Currently, the major averages are posting modest gains. The Dow is up 13.36 points or less than a tenth of a percent at 33,540.55, the Nasdaq is up 23.86 points or 0.2 percent at 13,729.46 and the S&P 500 is up 6.50 points or 0.2 percent at 4,084.41.

Profit taking contributed to the initial weakness on Wall Street, as some traders looked to cash in on the recent strength in the markets.

The Dow and the S&P 500 both ended Monday’s trading at record closing highs, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq extended last week’s rally to reach its best closing level in well over a month.

Selling pressure waned shortly after the start of trading, however, with traders worried about missing out on further upside.

A quiet day on the U.S. economic front may also be keeping traders on the sidelines ahead of the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s latest monetary policy meeting on Wednesday.

Reports on weekly jobless claims, the U.S. trade deficit and producer price inflation may also attract attention in the coming days along with remarks by Fed Chair Jerome Powell.

Most of the major sectors are showing only modest moves on the day, contributing to the lackluster performance by the broader markets.

Energy stocks have shown a strong move to the upside, however, with a rebound by the price of crude oil contributing to the strength in the sector.

Crude for May delivery is jumping $1.99 to $60.64 a barrel after plummeting $2.80 to $58.65 a barrel on Monday.

Reflecting the strength in the energy sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index is up by 2.1 percent and the NYSE Arca Oil Index is up by 1.9 percent.

An increase by the price of gold is also contributing to considerable strength among gold stocks, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index jumping by 1.8 percent.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index tumbled by 1.3 percent, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index advanced by 0.8 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index has surged up by 1.5 percent, the German DAX Index is up by 0.9 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.5 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries have rebounded following the pullback seen in the previous session. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 4.3 basis points at 1.677 percent.