US close: Stocks post solid gains, bouncing back from two days of losses
US stocks ended higher on Wednesday, rebounding from two days of losses on the back of worries about a slowdown in China, as investors sifted through a raft of domestic data.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 both ended up 1.8%, while the Nasdaq gained 2.5%.
Wall Street endured a torrid day on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones experiencing its third-biggest drop of the year, as disappointing economic data from China weighed on sentiment.
However, with Chinese markets closed on Thursday and Friday for the World War Two Victory Day parade, the remainder of the week should register a drop in the volatility that has characterised global markets over the last month.
"The saving grace could be the two-day Chinese holiday that begins on Thursday, which in theory should provide a moment of respite for volatility-weary investors and therefore a chance to avoid the usual last minute panic in the minutes before the closing bell," said Connor Campbell, financial analysts at Spreadex.
Wednesday data
Investors digested a slew of data on Wednesday, along with the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book for September, which was relatively upbeat.
Overall, the central bank said economic growth continued across most of its 12 districts, with manufacturing reports mostly positive and retail sales continuing to expand. The report also suggested that the tightening of labour markets was pushing wages up slightly in selected industries, especially in the New York, Cleveland, St. Louis, and San Francisco Districts.
Meanwhile, the ADP employment report, which is widely seen as a precursor to the all-important payrolls figures on Friday, showed employers added 190,000 jobs in August, which was a touch light of expectations for a reading of 200,000. The figure for July was revised down to 170,000 from a previous estimate of 185,000.
"We look to Friday’s official employment report from the Labor Department as a more reliable indicator of US labor markets," analysts at Barclays said in a note.
"We continue to expect non-farm payroll growth of 225k and a one-tenth decline in the unemployment rate, to 5.2%."
There was more positive news in the housing market, as the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said its seasonally adjusted index of application activity, which covers home purchase demand and refinancing demand, climbed 11.3% in the week ended 28 August.
US productivity in the second quarter was raised to a 3.3% annual pace from an original 1.3%, reflecting an earlier revision in gross domestic product that showed the economy was much stronger in the spring than initially reported.
Elsewhere, data released by the Commerce Department revealed that US factory orders climbed 0.4% in July to mark the second consecutive month of growth.
June's figures were upwardly revised to show a 2.2% increase compared with the 1.8% rise that was initially reported. However, July's gain was short of the 0.9% hike analysts had expected.
In company news, telecom group AT&T rose after saying that TRC Capital Corp. has made an unsolicited “mini-tender” offer to buy up to 3m of its shares. AT&T recommended that shareholders should reject the offer.
Technology giant Intel Corp. was on the front foot after it said late Tuesday that it would overhaul its flagship line of computer chips.
McDonald’s gained after announcing that it will offer all-day breakfasts at its US restaurants from next month. The fast food giant has been testing out all-day breakfast options since March in some of its worldwide franchises.
Handbags and accessories designer Vera Bradley surged after its second quarter results beat expectations.
Elsewhere, the dollar was broadly flat against the pound and rose 0.7% against both the yen and the euro, while gold futures slid 0.6% to $1,133.
Oil prices rebounded after losing over 9% in the previous session, with West Texas Intermediate up 1.2% to $45.97 a barrel, and Brent up 1.6% to $50.35 a barrel.
S&P 500 - Risers
Windstream Holdings Inc (WIN) $8.00 +7.96%
H&R Block Inc. (HRB) $35.43 +7.53%
Delta Airlines Inc. (DAL) $45.99 +5.07%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $518.78 +4.50%
CenturyLink Inc. (CTL) $27.01 +4.29%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $112.33 +4.28%
CH Robinson Worldwide Inc (CHRW) $68.74 +4.15%
Genworth Financial Inc. (GNW) $5.05 +4.12%
Vulcan Materials Co. (VMC) $95.60 +4.00%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $129.00 +4.00%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Ensco Plc. (ESV) $16.25 -4.92%
Newmont Mining Corp. (NEM) $16.22 -3.05%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $67.59 -2.96%
Nabors Industries Ltd. (NBR) $10.62 -2.93%
NRG Energy Inc. (NRG) $18.69 -2.86%
Chesapeake Energy Corp. (CHK) $7.37 -2.64%
Peabody Energy Corp. (BTU) $2.14 -2.50%
Noble Energy Inc. (NBL) $30.34 -2.48%
Helmerich & Payne Inc. (HP) $54.58 -2.40%
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (DO) $22.21 -2.20%
Dow Jones I.A - Risers
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $112.33 +4.28%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $43.33 +3.61%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $116.42 +2.96%
General Electric Co. (GE) $24.58 +2.93%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $28.60 +2.80%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $96.05 +2.76%
Boeing Co. (BA) $130.67 +2.53%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $101.93 +2.43%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $25.65 +2.11%
3M Co. (MMM) $141.23 +1.97%
Dow Jones I.A - Fallers
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $78.06 -0.17%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $518.78 +4.50%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $112.33 +4.28%
CH Robinson Worldwide Inc (CHRW) $68.74 +4.15%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $129.00 +4.00%
Biogen Inc (BIIB) $304.09 +3.96%
Avago Technologies Ltd. (AVGO) $124.04 +3.91%
Expeditors International Of Washington Inc. (EXPD) $49.88 +3.87%
Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA) $247.86 +3.87%
Liberty Interactive Corporation QVC Group (QVCA) $27.59 +3.76%
Nxp Semiconductors Nv (NXPI) $84.89 +3.73%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $67.59 -2.96%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $49.76 -1.66%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $105.38 -0.39%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $59.20 -0.07%