WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After moving mostly higher early in the session, stocks have seen further upside over the course of the trading day on Wednesday. The major averages have all climbed firmly into positive territory, with the S&P 500 breaking above 5,600 for the first time ever.
Currently, the major averages are just off their highs of the session. The Nasdaq is up 180.09 points or 1.0 percent at 18,609.38, the S&P 500 is up 37.72 points or 0.7 percent at 5,614.70 and the Dow is up 197.17 points or 0.5 percent at 39,489.14.
The advance on Wall Street partly reflects strength among technology stocks, as reflected by the notable advance by the tech-heavy Nasdaq.
The strength among tech stocks comes after Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) reported its second quarter sales surged much more than expected.
Shares of Taiwan Semiconductor, which supplies chips for AI giants like Nvidia (NVDA) and Apple (AAPL), are jumping by 2.7 percent.
Stocks may also be benefiting from optimism about the outlook for interest rates ahead of the release of closely watched consumer price inflation data on Thursday.
Economists expect the annual rate of consumer price growth to slow to 3.1 percent in June from 3.3 percent in May, while the annual rate of core consumer price growth is expected to hold at 3.4 percent.
During congressional testimony, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said more 'good data' would strengthen the central bank's confidence inflation is moving sustainably toward its 2 percent target and lead to a potential interest rate cut.
Powell also warned of the risk that leaving interest rates at an elevated level for too long could jeopardize economic growth.
'In light of the progress made both in lowering inflation and in cooling the labor market over the past two years, elevated inflation is not the only risk we face,' he said. 'Reducing policy restraint too late or too little could unduly weaken economic activity and employment.'
Sector News
Gold stocks have moved sharply higher on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index up by 2.3 percent. Earlier in the session, the index reached its best intraday level in over two years.
The rally by gold stocks comes amid an increase by the price of the precious metal, with gold for August delivery climbing $11.30 to $2,379.20 an ounce.
Significant strength also remains visible among semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 2.1percent surge by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. The index has reached a new record intraday high.
Housing stocks have also moved to the upside over the course of the session, resulting in a 1.7 percent advance by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index.
Biotechnology, brokerage and pharmaceutical stocks are also seeing some strength on the day, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.6 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index slid by 0.7 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index advanced by 0.7 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index both jumped by 0.9 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have shown a lack of direction ahead of tomorrow's inflation data. 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 4.290 percent.
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