US markets end higher on Wednesday

11 Jan 2024 Evaluate

The US markets ended higher with gains of around half percent on Wednesday. The strength on the markets reflected optimism ahead of the release of key U.S. inflation data in the comings days. The Labor Department's reports on consumer and producer price inflation, which are due to be released on Thursday and Friday, respectively, could have a significant impact on the outlook for interest rates. With street expecting the reports to show slowdowns in the annual rate of core price growth, the data could bolster optimism about near-term rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. However, if the data surprises to the upside, it could add to recent skepticism about whether the Fed will begin cutting rates in March. On the sectoral front, Software stocks showed a strong move to the upside on the day, driving the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index up by 1.6 percent to a record closing high. Considerable strength was also visible among housing stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent gain posted by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index.

On the economic data front, wholesale inventories in the U.S. dipped in line with economist estimates in the month of November, according to a report released by the Commerce Department. The Commerce Department said wholesale inventories edged down by 0.2 percent in November after falling by a revised 0.3 percent in October. Street had expected wholesale inventories to slip by 0.2 percent compared to the 0.4 percent decrease originally reported for the previous month. The modest decline in inventories came as inventories of non-durable goods fell by 0.5 percent in November after sliding by 0.7 percent in October, while inventories of durable goods came in unchanged for the second straight month. Meanwhile, the report said wholesales were virtually unchanged in November after tumbling by 1.5 percent in October.

Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 170.57 points or 0.45 percent to 37,695.73, Nasdaq gained 111.94 points or 0.75 percent to 14,969.65 and S&P 500 was up by 26.95 points 0.57 percent to 4,783.45.

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