Stocks have moved modestly higher during trading on Wednesday, with the major averages all moving to the upside following the mixed performance seen in the previous session.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq reached a new high for the session in recent trading and is currently up 60.72 points or 0.4 percent at 14,918.43.
The S&P 500 is also up 11.71 points or 0.3 percent at 4,768.21, while the narrower Dow is up 77.30 points or 0.2 percent at 37,602.46.
The modest strength on Wall Street may reflect optimism ahead to the release of key U.S. inflation data in the comings days.
The Labor Department’s reports on consumer and producer price inflation, which are due to be released on Thursday and Friday, respectively, could have a significant impact on the outlook for interest rates.
With economists expecting the reports to show slowdowns in the annual rate of core price growth, the data could bolster optimism about near-term rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.
However, if the data surprises to the episode, it could add to recent skepticism about whether the Fed will begin cutting rates in March.
Later in the day, trading could be impacted by reaction to the results of the Treasury Department’s auction of $37 billion worth of ten-year notes.
The results of the auction could affect treasury yields, which have recently been a key driver of trading on Wall Street.
Sector News
While most of the major sectors are showing only modest moves, housing stocks have shown a strong move to the upside, driving the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index up by 1.4 percent.
The strength in the sector comes after the Mortgage Bankers Association released a report showing mortgage applications in the week ended January 5th jumped by 9.9 percent from one week earlier.
Lennar (LEN) has helped lead the sector higher after the homebuilder raised its annual dividend to $2.00 per share from $1.50 per share and increased its stock repurchase authorization by $5 billion.
Notable strength is also visible among software stocks, as reflected by the 1.3 percent gain being posted by the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index.
On the other hand, biotechnology stocks are seeing considerable weakness, dragging the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index down by 1.3 percent.
Energy stocks have also moved to the downside after the Energy Information Administration released a report showing an unexpected increase in U.S. crude oil inventories in the week ended January 5th.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower on Wednesday, although Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index bucked the downtrend and jumped by 2.0 percent. China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell by 0.5 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index slid by 0.6 percent.
Meanwhile, European stocks are little changed on the day. While the German DAX Index is up by 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is just below the unchanged line and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.2 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have pulled back near the unchanged line after seeing early strength. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by less than a basis point at 4.011 percent.
Business News
U.S. Stocks Seeing Modest Strength As Inflation Data Looms
2024-01-10 16:06:10
