WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After showing a strong move to the upside early in the session, stocks have given back ground over the course of the trading day on Tuesday. The major averages have pulled back well off their highs of the session, with the Dow briefly dipping below the unchanged line.
Currently, the major averages are all in positive territory. The Nasdaq is up 148.57 points or 0.6 percent at 26,128.76, the S&P 500 is up 17.62 points or 0.2 percent at 7,670.48 and the Dow is up 40.62 points or 0.1 percent at 53,457.78.
The early strength on Wall Street partly reflected a positive reaction to an extended nosedive by the price of crude oil, which continues to give back ground after snapping a six-day winning streak on Monday.
After plunging by more than 2 percent during yesterday's trading, U.S. crude oil futures are plummeting by more than 3 percent.
The extended pullback in crude oil prices comes after the Treasury Department officially announced 'Operation Economic Outcast,' calling it an unprecedented, whole-of-government, economic campaign against Iran and its 'enablers.'
While the U.S. sanctioned nearly 60 entities, individuals, and vessels that it said 'enable the Iranian regime's recklessness,' traders seem relieved the Treasury stopped short of immediate secondary sanctions against other countries sustaining Iran's trade.
The steep drop in crude oil prices has also contributed to a continued decrease in treasury yields, which also contributed to the positive sentiment on Wall Street.
The subsequent pullback by stocks may partly have reflected concerns about an escalating trade war between the U.S. and Canada.
After President Donald Trump imposed 50 percent tariffs on a range of Canadian goods, Canada has responded by announcing retaliatory tariffs on about $20 billion of U.S. goods
Traders may also have been reluctant to make significant bets ahead of key events in the coming days, including the release of key U.S. inflation data, Nvidia's (NVDA) quarterly earnings and the Jackson Hole economic symposium.
Sector News
Computer hardware stocks continue to see substantial strength on the day, with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index jumping by 2.6 percent after moving sharply lower over the past several sessions.
Significant strength also remains visible among semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent gain being posted by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index.
Shares of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) are surging by 4.8 percent after Raymond James upgraded its rating on the chipmaker's stock to Strong Buy from Outperform.
Gold, biotechnology and pharmaceutical stocks are also seeing notable strength, while oil producer stocks are seeing further downside amid the steep drop by the price of crude oil.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.5 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index edged up by 0.2 percent.
Most European stocks have also moved to the upside on the day. The German DAX Index is up by 0.7 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.3 percent, although the French CAC 40 Index has bucked the uptrend and edged down by 0.1 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved sharply higher amid the extended nosedive by crude oil prices. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 5.5 basis points at 4.649 percent.
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