WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have shown a lack of direction over the course of the trading day on Wednesday, with the major averages bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line following the mixed performance seen in the previous session.
Currently, the major averages are posting modest gains. The Dow is up 76.65 points or 0.2 percent at 44,099.94, the Nasdaq is up 8.79 points or less than a tenth of a percent at 20,686.59 and the S&P 500 is up 6.40 points or 0.1 percent at 6,250.16.
The lackluster performance on Wall Street comes following the release of a Labor Department report showing producer prices in the U.S. unexpectedly came in flat in the month of June.
The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand was unchanged in June after rising by an upwardly revised 0.3 percent in May.
Economists had expected producer prices to increase by 0.2 percent compared to the 0.1 percent uptick originally reported for the previous month.
The report also said the annual rate of producer price growth slowed to 2.3 percent in June from an upwardly revised 2.7 percent in May.
The annual rate of producer price growth was expected to edge down to 2.5 percent from the 2.6 percent originally reported for the previous month.
While the data has helped ease inflation concerns, the Federal Reserve is still seen as likely to leave interest rates unchanged until September at the earliest.
The Federal Reserve released a separate report showing industrial production in the U.S. increased by more than expected in the month of June.
Among individual stocks, shares of ASML (ASML) have moved sharply lower after the semiconductor equipment maker warned it may see no growth in 2026.
Financial giant Morgan Stanley (MS) has also moved to the downside despite reporting second quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines.
Meanwhile, shares of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) have surged after the healthcare giant reported better than expected second quarter results and raised its full-year guidance.
Sector News
Reflecting the lackluster performance by the broader markets, most of the major sectors are showing only modest moves on the day.
Pharmaceutical stocks are seeing significant strength on the upbeat J&J earnings, however, driving the NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index up by 1.9 percent.
Strength is also visible among biotechnology and healthcare stocks, with the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index and the Dow Jones U.S. Health Care Index both climbing by 1.2 percent.
On the other hand, semiconductor stocks are giving back ground following yesterday's rally, dragging the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index down by 1.7 percent. The index ended the previous session at its best closing level in a year.
Energy stocks have also shown a notable move to the downside, moving lower along with the price of crude oil.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index and China's Shanghai Composite Index closed just below the unchanged line, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dipped by 0.3 percent.
Meanwhile, European stocks have moved mostly higher on the day. The German DAX Index is up by 0.3 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.2 percent, although the French CAC 40 Index is nearly flat.
In the bond market, treasuries are regaining ground after moving notably lower on Tuesday. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 2.8 basis points at 4.461 percent.
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