WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have moved mostly higher during trading on Wednesday, regaining ground following the pullback seen over the two previous sessions. The major averages have all moved to the upside but remain well off last Friday's one-month highs.
The major averages have given back ground in recent trading but currently remain positive. The Dow is up 201.95 points or 0.5 percent at 41,030.95, the Nasdaq is up 18.58 points or 0.3 percent at 5,625.49 and the Nasdaq is up 37.51 points or 0.2 percent at 17,727.17.
The modest strength on Wall Street comes following news that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will meet with China's lead representative on economic matters during a trip to Switzerland on Thursday.
'My sense is that this will be about de-escalation, not about the big trade deal,' Bessent told Fox News. 'But we've got to de-escalate, before we can move forward.'
Bessent called the massive tariffs imposed by the U.S. and China the 'equivalent of an embargo,' adding, 'We don't want to decouple, what we want is fair trade.'
The markets are also benefitting from a positive reaction to some of the latest earnings news, with shares of Disney (DIS) surging by 10.1 percent after the entertainment giant reported better than expected fiscal second quarter results and raised its full-year guidance.
Chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has also moved to the upside after reporting first quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines.
On the other hand, shares of Super Micro Computer (SMCI) have plunged by 4.4 percent after the server maker reported fiscal third quarter results that missed expectations and provided disappointing guidance for the current quarter.
Overall trading activity appears somewhat subdued, however, as traders look ahead to the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement this afternoon.
With CME Group's FedWatch Tool currently indicating a 99.0 percent chance the Fed will leave interest rates unchanged, traders will look to the accompanying statement for clues about the outlook for rates.
Sector News
Airline stocks have moved sharply higher on the day, with the NYSE Arca Airline Index surging by 2.3 percent.
Considerable strength is also visible among retail stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent gain being posted by the Dow Jones U.S. Retail Index.
Meanwhile, gold stocks are giving back ground along with the price of the precious metal, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 1.7 percent.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region mostly higher on Wednesday. China's Shanghai Composite Index climbed by 0.8 percent and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index rose by 0.3 percent, although Japan's Nikkei 225 Index bucked the uptrend and edged down by 0.1 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.9 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.5 percent and the German DAX Index is down by 0.2 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries are extending the upward move seen over the course of the previous session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 2.9 basis points at 4.289 percent.
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