The US markets ended mostly higher on Wednesday. The choppy trading on markets came as traders remained reluctant to make significant moves as the wait for more clarity about the near-term outlook for the markets. Strong economic data has helped lift stocks to record highs in recent sessions, but traders are worried the markets are becoming overbought. Traders also kept an eye on the minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting, although the central bank only reiterated that it is unlikely to change its ultra-loose monetary policy anytime soon. Participants in the March meeting acknowledged the improvement in the medium-term outlook for real GDP growth and employment but continued to see the uncertainty surrounding that outlook as elevated.
On the economic data front, the Commerce Department released a report showing the US trade deficit widened more than expected in the month of February. The Commerce Department said the trade deficit widened to $71.1 billion in February from a revised $67.8 billion in January. The Commerce Department said the trade deficit widened to $71.1 billion in February from a revised $67.8 billion in January. Street had expected the deficit to widen to $70.5 billion from the $68.2 billion originally reported for the previous month. With the bigger than expected increase in February, the size of the US trade deficit reached a new record high.
Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 16.02 points or 0.05 percent to 33,446.26, and S&P 500 was up by 6.01 points or 0.15 percent to 4,079.95, while Nasdaq declined 9.54 points or 0.07 percent to 13,688.84.