WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have moved mostly higher during trading on Wednesday, regaining ground following the weakness seen in the previous session. The major averages have all moved to the upside but remain well off last week's highs.
Currently, the major averages are off their highs of the session but remain in positive territory. The Nasdaq is up 108.08 points or 0.6 percent at 19,629.17, the Dow is up 206.68 points or 0.5 percent at 42,422.48 and the S&P 500 is up 25.78 points or 0.4 percent at 6,008.50.
The strength on Wall Street comes despite ongoing concerns about the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran.
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei threatened the U.S. with 'irreparable damage' if the country engages in the clash after President Donald Trump demanded Iran's 'unconditional surrender' in a post on Truth Social on Tuesday.
However, Trump told reporters earlier today that Iran has reached out to him about negotiations to end the conflict.
'They want to negotiate,' Trump said. 'They even suggested that they come to the White House. That's courageous. It's like not easy for them to do.'
Traders are also looking ahead to the Federal Reserve's announcement of its latest monetary policy decision this afternoon.
While the Fed is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged, the accompanying statement and Fed officials' latest projections may provide clues about the outlook for rates.
On the U.S. economic front, a report released by the Labor Department showed first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits edged modestly lower in the week ended June 14th.
The report said initial jobless claims dipped to 245,000, a decrease of 5,000 from the previous week's revised level of 250,000.
Economists had expected jobless claims to slip to 245,000 from the 248,000 originally reported for the previous week.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department said the less volatile four-week moving average crept up to 245,500, an increase of 4,750 from the previous week's revised average of 240,750.
With the uptick, the four-week moving average reached its highest level since hitting 246,000 in the week ended August 19, 2023.
The Commerce Department also released a report showing a steep drop by new residential construction in the U.S. in the month of May.
Sector News
Banking stocks are turning in some of the market's best performances on the day, with the KBW Bank Index climbing by 1.8 percent.
Significant strength is also visible among housing stocks, as reflected by the 1.3 percent gain being posted by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index.
Telecom, computer hardware and networking stocks are also seeing notable strength, while energy stocks have moved to the downside along with the price of crude oil.
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 advanced by 0.9 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slumped by 1.1 percent.
The major European markets are also mixed on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.2 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.2 percent and the German DAX Index is down by 0.3 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries are extending the rebound seen in the previous session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-tear note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 4.0 basis points at 4.351 percent.
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