US stocks rose on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 heading for another all-time closing high, as upbeat tech earnings led by Netflix raised hopes that the record rally would continue.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) added 0.6%, building on a new closing high reached on Tuesday, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) signaled a return to gains with a rise of about 0.4%, or roughly 150 points.
Technology stocks outperformed, with the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) rising about 0.9% after quarterly earnings from Netflix (NFLX) helped paint a picture of consumer health. Shares of the streaming giant rose nearly 10% in early market trading after reporting a subscriber increase that far exceeded expectations.
Meanwhile, massive updates from chip equipment maker ASML (ASML) and software maker SAP (SAP) have raised optimism about a chip industry revival and an AI-fueled boom in the technology space.
Seven Latecomer Tesla (TSLA) is the highlight of a series of corporate reports on Wednesday, with a focus on deliveries as the electric car maker faces a tough market and strong rivals in China. Technology powerhouse IBM (IBM) is also on the agenda.
While earnings are the center of attention, the debate over when the Fed will cut interest rates continues.
With data driving the outlook, and updates on US manufacturing and services activity He came strong With economic output reaching its highest level in seven months – ahead of Thursday's first reading of fourth-quarter gross domestic product and the release of the Fed's favored personal consumption expenditures inflation numbers on Friday.
Read more: What a pause on federal interest rate hikes means for bank accounts, CDs, loans and credit cards
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US economic output reaches its highest level in seven months
Economic output reached a 7-month high in January.
S&P Global Composite US PMI, Which captures activity in both the services and manufacturing sectors, came in at 52.3 in January, up from 50.9 in December and better than the 51.0 that economists had expected.
Standard & Poor's reported that business confidence reached a 20-month high while prices, a measure of inflation, rose at their slowest pace since May 2020. The manufacturing index saw the largest increase with a reading of 50.3, up from 47.9 the previous month. The services component of the Standard & Poor's report showed the index at 52.9 this month, up from 51.4 in December.
Any reading above 50 for these indicators represents expansion in the sector. Readings below 50 indicate contraction.
“Preliminary PMI data point to an encouraging start to the year for the US economy, with companies reporting a marked acceleration in growth alongside a sharp deceleration in inflation pressures,” said Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence. Release.
Source: Standard & Poor's Global -
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