WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks are likely to move to the upside in early trading on Wednesday, extending the notable rebound seen in the previous session. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the Dow futures up by 122 points.
Early buying interest may be generated in reaction to upbeat earnings news from Apple (AAPL), with the tech giant jumping by 2 percent in pre-market trading.
After the close of trading on Tuesday, Apple reported fiscal first quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates on strong iPhone sales and provided upbeat guidance for the current quarter.
Shares of General Electric (GE) are also likely to see initial strength after the industrial conglomerate reported better than expected fourth quarter results.
On the other hand, shares of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) may come under pressure after the chipmaker reported fourth quarter results that beat expectations but provided disappointing guidance.
Overall trading may be somewhat subdued, however, as some traders may stick to the sidelines ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement this afternoon.
The Fed is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged, although the accompanying statement and Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's subsequent press conference will continue to attract attention.
Shortly after the start of trading, The National Association of Realtors is scheduled to release its report on pending home sales in the month of December. Pending home sales are expected to rise by 0.5 percent in December after jumping by 1.2 percent in November.
A pending home sale is one in which a contract was signed but not yet closed. Normally, it takes four to six weeks to close a contracted sale.
Following the sell-off seen on Monday, stocks showed a strong move back to the upside during trading on Tuesday. The major averages moved significantly higher but remain well off their recent, record highs.
The major averages finished the day firmly in positive territory. The Dow climbed 187.05 points or 0.7 percent to 28,722.85, the Nasdaq surged up 130.37 points or 1.4 percent to 9,269.68 and the S&P 500 jumped 32.61 points or 1 percent to 3,276.24.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 advanced by 0.7 percent, while South Korea's Kospi rose by 0.4 percent after plunging by more than 3 percent on Tuesday.
The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index has risen by 0.5 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and the German DAX Index are both up by 0.2 percent.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are climbing $0.69 to $54.17 a barrel after rising $0.34 to $53.48 a barrel on Tuesday. Meanwhile, an ounce of gold is trading at $1,570.60, up $0.80 compared to the previous session's close of $1,569.80. On Tuesday, gold slid $7.60.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 109.13 yen compared to the 109.15 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Tuesday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.0997 compared to yesterday's $1.1022.
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