U.S. stocks closed higher on Wednesday, extending recent uptrend amid continued optimism about growth and on hopes the Federal Reserve might not begin tapering its bond-buying program anytime soon.<\/p>\n
Investors looked ahead to the upcoming Jackson Hole Symposium. The Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is expected to provide cues on the central bank’s tapering timeline.<\/p>\n
At the virtual conference on Friday, the Federal Reserve’s policymakers are expected to present a timeline for tapering the central bank’s bond-buying program.<\/p>\n
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq climbed to fresh record highs and the Dow closed up as well. <\/p>\n
The Dow ended the session with a gain of 39.24 points or 0.11 percent at 35,405.40. The S&P 500, which advanced to 4,501.71, closed up by 9.96 points or 0.22 percent at 4,496.19, while the tech-laden Nasdaq settled with a gain of 22.06 points or 0.15 percent at 15,041.86, off a fresh intraday high of 15,059.43.<\/p>\n
On the economic front, data released by the Commerce Department showed durable goods orders edged down by 0.1 percent in July following a 0.8 percent increase in June. Economists had expected orders to decrease by 0.3 percent.<\/p>\n
Excluding a steep drop in orders for transportation equipment, durable goods orders climbed by 0.7 percent in July after rising by 0.6 percent in June. Ex-transportation orders were expected to increase by 0.5 percent.<\/p>\n
American Express gained more than 3 percent. Travelers Companies climbed more than 2.5 percent and JP Morgan Chase advanced nearly 2 percent. <\/p>\n
Honeywell International, Chevron, Goldman Sachs and Caterpillar posted moderate gains. <\/p>\n
Salesforce.com closed on a firm note despite reporting a drop in earnings. The company said its second-quarter earnings totaled $0.54 billion, or $0.56 per share, as against $2.63 billion, or $2.85 per share, in last year’s second quarter.<\/p>\n
Apple, United Health, Visa, Amgen, Merck, Johnson & Johnson and Procter & Gamble drifted lower.<\/p>\n
Nordstrom shares plunged more than 17 percent after the company announced that it would only be in a position to return cash to shareholders by the end of year, as it expects costs to continue rising into the second half of its fiscal year.<\/p>\n
Other Markets<\/p>\n
Asian stocks turned in a mixed performance on Wednesday as investors looked ahead to the upcoming U.S. Fed’s Jackson Hole symposium later this week.<\/p>\n
European stocks ended slightly higher on Wednesday as investors made cautious moves, looking ahead to the upcoming Jackson Hole Symposium for directional clues. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 climbed 0.34% and France’s CAC 40 gained 0.18%, while Germany’s DAX ended 0.28% down. Switzerland’s SMI shed 0.58%. The pan European Stoxx 600 is edging up 0.1%.<\/p>\n
Looking Ahead<\/p>\n
The Labor Department will release the data on jobless claims on Thursday. A report on second-quarter GDP is due out tomorrow. Data on personal consumption expenditure is also due for release tomorrow. <\/p>\n