Major Averages Climbing To New Highs For The Session
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Stocks are moving higher in afternoon trading, with the S&P 500 reaching a new record intraday high. The S&P 500 is up 42.35 points or 0.9 percent at 4,996.58, the Nasdaq is up 145.85 points or 0.9 percent at 15,754.85 and the Dow is up 209.97 points or 0.6 percent at 38,731.33. Recent upbeat economic data has seemingly reduced the likelihood of a near-term rate cut but a strong is still seen as a net positive for stocks. Share of Enphase Energy (ENPH) are soaring by 20.1 percent after the solar inverter maker reported weaker than expected fourth quarter revenues but said it expects demand to improve throughout 2024. Auto giant Ford (F) has also surged by 4.9 percent after reporting better than expected fourth quarter results, providing upbeat guidance for 2024 and announcing a supplemental dividend of 18 cents per share. On the other hand, shares of Snap (SNAP) have plummeted by 35.9 percent after the Snapchat parent reported mixed fourth quarter results and forecast first quarter sales below analyst estimates. In U.S. economic news, the Commerce Department released a report this morning showing the U.S. trade deficit widened in the month of December. The Commerce Department said the trade deficit increased to $62.2 billion in December from a revised $61.9 billion in November. Software stocks continue to see significant strength on the day, driving the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index up by 1.8 percent to a record intraday high. Considerable strength also remains visible among housing stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent gain being posted by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index. Semiconductor stocks are also seeing a notable rebound after moving sharply lower on Tuesday, while biotechnology stocks have moved to the downside on the day. In overseas trading, stock across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Wednesday. China's Shanghai Composite Index surged by 1.4 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dipped by 0.3 percent and Japan's Nikkei 225 Index edged down by 0.1 percent. Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index fell by 0.4 percent, the German DAX Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index both slid by 0.7 percent.

#StockMarket #S&p500 #Nasdaq #Dow #EnphaseEnergy #Ford #Snap #TradeDeficit #SoftwareStocks #HousingStocks #SemiconductorStocks #BiotechnologyStocks #Asia-pacific #Europe

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