WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have moved sharply higher during trading on Wednesday, extending the rally seen in the previous session. The major averages have all shown substantial moves to the upside, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq leading the charge.
Currently, the major averages are off their highs of the session but still firmly positive. The Nasdaq is up 641.77 points or 3.9 percent at 16,942.19, the S&P 500 is up 155.85 points or 3.0 percent at 5,443.61 and the Dow is up 906.82 points or 2.3 percent at 40,093.80.
The extended rally on Wall Street comes after President Donald Trump appeared to soften his stance on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
'I have no intention of firing him,' Trump told reporters on Tuesday but reiterated he would like to see Powell and the Fed resume lowering interest rates.
Trump's attacks on Powell, including calling him a 'major loser' as recently as Monday, had led to anxiety on Wall Street about the Fed's independence.
The president also suggested he's willing to take a less confrontational approach to trade talks with China, predicting the current 145 percent tariff on Chinese imports will 'come down substantially.'
Adding to the positive sentiment, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said there is an 'opportunity for a big deal' between the U.S. and China.
'If they want to rebalance, let's do it together,' Bessent said during an appearance at the Institute of International Trade and Finance in Washington, D.C. 'This is an incredible opportunity.'
The continued strength on Wall Street also comes amid a sharp increase by shares of Tesla (TSLA), with the electric vehicle maker surging by 8.0 percent.
The spike by Tesla comes after the company reported weaker than expected first quarter results but CEO Elon Musk said amount of time he spends with the Department of Government Efficiency will decline 'significantly' beginning in May.
Sector News
Computer hardware stocks are turning in some of the market's best performances on the day, resulting in a 5.6 percent spike by the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index.
Semiconductor, networking and software stocks are also seeing substantial strength, contributing to the surge by the tech-heavy Nasdaq.
Outside of the tech sector, considerable strength is visible among airline stocks, with the NYSE Arca Airline Index soaring by 4.9 percent.
Financial, retail and steel stocks are also seeing significant strength, while gold stocks are among the few groups bucking the uptrend amid a steep drop by the price of the precious metal.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index jumped by 1.9 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged by 2.4 percent.
The major European markets have also shown strong moves to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index is up by 3.3 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is up by 2.6 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 1.2 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries are seeing continued strength after ending the previous session modestly higher. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 6.4 basis points at 4.325 percent.
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