WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on Wednesday following the mixed performance seen in the previous session. The major averages have all moved to the upside on the day, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq showing a particularly strong upward move.
Currently, the major averages all remain in positive territory, although the Dow is up just 53.37 points or 0.2 percent at 29,474.29. The Nasdaq is up 211.29 points or 1.8 percent at 11,765.14 and the S&P 500 is up 29.36 points or 0.8 percent at 3,574.89.
The strength on Wall Street largely reflected a rebound by technology stocks, as reflected by the jump by the Nasdaq.
The Nasdaq reached a record intraday high in early trading on Monday before coming under pressure and ending the day sharply lower. The index saw further downside on Tuesday, slumping by 2.9 percent over the course of the two days.
The pullback by tech stocks came as upbeat news regarding a potential coronavirus vaccine led traders to cycle out of stocks that benefited from the lockdowns imposed as a result of the pandemic.
Traders seem to be shifting back into those stocks in today's trading, with Zoom (ZM), Amazon (AMZN), and Apple (AAPL) posting notable gains on the day.
The modest gain by the Dow also reflects strength among tech stocks, as Apple, Salesforce.com (CRM) and Microsoft (MSFT) are turning in some of the blue chip index's best performances.
Meanwhile, traders are cashing on the rally by cyclical stocks seen over the past two sessions, limiting the upside for the Dow.
Overall trading activity is somewhat subdued due to the Veterans Day holiday, as banks and the bond markets are closed and no major U.S. economic data is scheduled to be released.
Sector News
Semiconductor stocks continue to see substantial strength in mid-day trading, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index spiking by 3.5 percent after plunging by 4.2 percent over the two previous sessions.
Bargain hunting has also contributed to considerable strength among software stocks, as reflected by the 2.9 percent jump by the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index.
Retail stocks have shown a strong move to the upside on the day, driving the Dow Jones U.S. Retail Index up by 1.7 percent.
Meanwhile, airline stocks are giving back ground, with the NYSE Arca Airline Index tumbling by 2.4 percent. The index edged slightly lower on Tuesday after soaring to a five-month closing high on Monday.
Gold stocks have also come under pressure, extending the steep drop seen over the past few sessions. The NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index is falling by 1.3 percent amid a decrease by the price of the precious metal.
Chemical, banking and oil service stocks are also seeing notable weakness, partly offsetting the strength in the aforementioned 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 jumped by 1.8 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index fell by 0.5 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index surged up by 1.4 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index rose by 0.4 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively.
The bond markets are closed on the day due to the Veterans Day holiday. In the previous session, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, inched up by 1.4 basis points to a nearly eight-month closing high 0.972 percent.
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