U.S. stocks were trading solidly higher on Wednesday, led by sharp rallies in energy, financials and industrials sectors.
Energy stocks were boosted by President Donald Trump’s decision a day earlier to pull the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear deal and resume sanctions against the oil-producing nation.
What are markets doing?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 200 points, or 0.8%, to 24,560. The S&P 500 gained 26 points to 2,698, a gain of 1%. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 66 points, or 0.9%, to 7,333.
Energy shares jumped 2.4%, by far the biggest outperformer among the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors. Financials, material, industrials and technology shares rose more than 1%. Meanwhile, telecoms and utilities were the only laggards, down about 1%.
What is driving the market?
A rally in oil prices helped lift U.S.-listed energy companies in premarket action, which pushed stock-index futures higher. West Texas Intermediate oil jumped 3.2% while Brent was up 3%. Trump said the U.S. intends to impose sanctions on Iran, curbing the country’s oil exports and tightening global oil supply.
Also affecting oil markets was data from the Energy Information Administration, which showed that crude-oil stockpiles fell more than expected in the latest week.
The jump in oil coincided with a rise in Treasury yields, as rising energy prices can lift inflation expectations, which are bearish for bonds that have a fixed value. The yield on 10-year U.S. notes briefly rose back above 3%. The dollar edged lower, off 0.1% at 93.04.
What are strategists saying?
“It’s difficult to discern how much of Trump’s decision was priced into stocks, and how big of a risk it represents, though it is certainly helping to sustain and extend the crude-oil rally today,” said Ryan Crane, who oversees $5 billion in assets as chief investment officer at Stephens Investment Management Group.
“We’ve been shouting from the rooftops that there’s more risk now than there has been over the past several years. The motto used to be to buy the dip, but the coordinated monetary policy that has suppressed risk since 2009 is ending. We’re not particularly worried about valuations here, but that backstop is ending.”
Stock movers
Among oil companies on the rise, Exxon Mobil Corp. added 2.6%, Chevron Corp. climbed 2.2%, and Devon Energy Corp. picked up 4.3%.
Dow component Walt Disney Co. fell 1.8% even after its earnings out late Tuesday beat forecasts. Its results were boosted by performance at its movie-studio arm after the huge success of “Black Panther.”
Walmart Inc. shares fell 2.9% after the retail giant said it was taking control of India’s largest e-commerce company, Flipkart Group, for $16 billion, as the Bentonville, Ark.-based company tries to fend off Amazon.com Inc. at home and abroad.
TripAdvisor Inc. soared 22%. The online travel-booking service late Tuesday released results that topped Wall Street estimates.
Groupon Inc. jumped 3.6% after it unexpectedly reported an adjusted profit and revenue that fell less than expected.
Electronic Arts Inc. climbed 6.6%, boosted by positive analyst commentary following its quarterly results.
Shares of Monster Beverage Corp. sagged 7% a day after it posted earnings below forecasts.
Shares of Papa John’s International Inc. fell 3.7%. The pizza chain late Tuesday reported a decline in quarterly sales.
Shares of ADT Inc. tumbled 8.8%, a day after the home-security company reported its first-quarter results.
Coty Inc. slumped 9.5% after it reported adjusted third-quarter earnings that topped expectations, along with better-than-expected revenue.
Mylan NV rose 4.2%. It reported first-quarter earnings that came in below analyst forecasts.
And after the market closes, Roku Inc. 21st Century Fox Inc. and IAC/InterActiveCorp. are slated to report.
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What’s on the economic calendar?
The producer-price index rose 0.1% in April, below forecasts. The core PPI was also up 0.1%.
Separately, U.S. wholesale inventories rose 0.3% in March.
What are other markets doing?
Asian markets closed mixed, while European stock benchmarks mainly traded higher. Gold prices were flat at $1,313.50.