WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks moved mostly higher during trading on Wednesday, regaining ground following the pullback seen over the past few sessions. The major averages all moved back to the upside, although buying interest appeared somewhat subdued.
The major averages all finished the day in positive territory. The Dow climbed 295.07 points or 0.6 percent to 53,061.95, the Nasdaq rose 118.05 points or 0.5 percent to 26,217.82 and the S&P 500 increased 35.13 points or 0.5 percent to 7,666.60.
The strength on Wall Street may partly have reflected bargain hunting following the recent slump, which dragged the S&P 500 down to its lowest levels in nearly a month.
Early buying interest was also generated in reaction to a pullback by crude oil prices and treasury yields, although stocks saw continued strength even as oil prices and yields recovered higher.
Even as yields bounced well off their early lows, a report from payroll processor ADP showing weaker than expected private sector job growth may have eased concerns about the outlook for interest rates.
ADP said private sector employment rose by 38,000 jobs in August after climbing by an upwardly revised 46,000 jobs in July.
Economists had expected private sector employment to grow by 48,000 jobs compared to the addition of 44,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
The modest increase in August reflected the slowest pace of job creation since private sector employers added just 11,000 jobs in January.
Traders may be hopeful that signs of weakness in the labor market will lead the Federal Reserve to refrain from raising interest rates later this month even amid concerns about inflation.
On Friday, the Labor Department is scheduled to release its more closely watched monthly report on employment, which includes both public and private sector jobs.
Economists currently expect employment to climb by 55,000 jobs in August after dipping by 23,000 jobs in July, while the unemployment rate is expected to tick up to 4.2 percent from 4.1 percent.
Sector News
Gold stocks moved sharply higher amid a rebound by the price of crude oil, resulting in a 2.9 percent surge by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index.
Substantial strength was also visible among oil service stocks, as reflected by the 2.4 percent jump by the Philadelphia Oil Service Index.
Telecom, airline and biotechnology stocks also saw significant strength, while software stocks showed a notable move to the downside.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index plunged by 2.9 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index slumped by 1 percent.
The major European markets also moved to the downside on the day. While the German DAX Index fell by 0.5 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index both dipped by 0.3 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries pulled back near the unchanged line after initially rebounding from recent weakness. The yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, ended the day flat at 4.796 percent after hitting a low of 4.768 percent.
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