WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After advancing early in the session, stocks remained mostly positive throughout the trading day on Wednesday, although buying interest appeared somewhat subdued. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 finished the day higher, partly offsetting the weakness seen to start the week.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq climbed 143.04 points or 0.5 percent to 26,588.49 and the S&P 500 rose 20.30 points or 0.3 percent to 7,748.50.
Meanwhile, the narrower Dow spent most of the day lingering near the unchanged line before closing down 21.58 points or less than a tenth of a percent at 53,770.27.
The early strength on Wall Street came as relatively tame consumer price inflation data eased concerns about the outlook for interest rates.
Before the start of trading, the Labor Department released a report showing consumer prices crept up in line with economist estimates in the month of July.
The Labor Department said consumer prices inched up by 0.1 percent in July after falling by 0.4 percent in June. The uptick in consumer prices matched economist estimates.
The report also said core consumer prices, which exclude food and energy prices, rose by 0.2 percent in July after coming in unchanged in June. The increase in core prices also matched expectations.
The annual rate of growth by consumer prices edged down to 3.4 percent in July from 3.5 percent in June, while the annual rate of growth by core consumer prices slipped to 2.5 percent in July from 2.6 percent in June. The modest slowdowns also came in line with estimates.
Strength among AI-related stocks also contributed to the upward move amid a positive reaction to quarterly results and guidance from companies like CoreWeave (CRWV) and Super Micro Computer (SMCI).
Buying interest waned over the course of the session, however, as the recent resurgence of Middle East tensions and the subsequent spike in crude oil prices have led to worries about a reacceleration in inflation.
While U.S. crude oil futures are little changed on the day, they remain elevated following the sharp increase seen over the past few sessions.
Outside mediators continue to make efforts to bring the U.S. and Iran back to the negotiating table, but the rhetoric from the two countries' leaders suggest the conflict is not likely to end soon.
Sector News
With Super Micro Computer leading the sector higher, computer hardware stocks extended the rally seen over the past few sessions.
Reflecting the strength in the sector, the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index spiked by 5.5 percent to a record closing high.
Networking and semiconductor stocks also saw substantial strength, contributed to the upward move by the tech-heavy Nasdaq.
Transportation, gold and brokerage stocks also moved to the upside on the day, while housing and software stocks showed notable moves to the downside.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in another mixed performance on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.8 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slid by 0.8 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index fell by 0.5 percent, the German DAX Index dipped by 0.2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged down by 0.1 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries pulled back near the unchanged line after seeing initial strength. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, edged down by less than a basis point to 4.682 percent after hitting a low of 4.646 percent.
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