Toward the end of trading Wednesday, the Dow traded up 0.25% to 30,763 while the NASDAQ rose 0.5% to 13,680.71. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.45% to 3,843.70.
The U.S. has the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the world, reporting a total of 26,436,590 cases with around 446,900 deaths. India confirmed a total of at least 10,777,280 confirmed cases and 154,590 deaths, while Brazil reported over 9,283,410 COVID-19 cases with 226,300 deaths. In total, there were at least 103,972,190 cases of COVID-19 worldwide with over 2,255,490 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
Leading and Lagging Sectors
Energy shares rose 3.6% on Wednesday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Clean Energy Fuels Corp. CLNE 22.92%, up 20%, and Centrus Energy Corp LEU 15.59%, up 16%.
In trading on Wednesday, real estate shares fell by 0.6%.
Top Headline
Alphabet Inc. GOOGL 9.62% reported better-than-expected results for its fourth quarter.
Alphabet reported quarterly earnings of $22.30 per share, beating analysts’ expectations of $15.90 per share. The company posted revenue of $56.90 billion, versus estimates of $53.13 billion.
Equities Trading UP
Sino-Global Shipping America, Ltd. SINO 62.37% shares shot up 63% to $7.71
after the company announced a newly-appointed Chief Operating Officer and Chief Technology Officer to spearhead its efforts to enter Bitcoin mining.
Shares of GW Pharmaceuticals plc GWPH 45.35% got a boost, shooting 46% to $212.80 after the company announced it will be acquired by Jazz Pharmaceuticals for $7.2 billion.
Tyme Technologies Inc TYME 88.46% shares were also up, gaining 105% to $3.74 after the company was granted US patent claims covering the use of TYME-19 to treat COVID-19 infections.
Check out these big movers of the day
Equities Trading DOWN
Vaxart, Inc. VXRT 58.56% shares tumbled 59% to $9.65 after reporting that neutralizing antibodies were not detected in volunteers after a single dose of its experimental oral COVID-19 vaccine candidate, VXA-CoV2-1, in a Phase 1 trial of 35 healthy adults.
Shares of Moleculin Biotech, Inc. MBRX 26.12% were down 27% to $4.6450 after the company priced its 14,273,684 share common stock offering at $4.75 per share.
Iteris, Inc. ITI 14.51% was down, falling 15% to $6.01 after reporting downbeat quarterly results.
Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded up 1.9% to $55.80, while gold traded up 0.1% to $1,834.90.
Silver traded up 1.8% Wednesday to $26.885 while copper rose 1.2% to $3.5670.
Euro zone
European shares closed mostly higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 gained 0.33%, the Spanish Ibex Index rose 0.78% and the German DAX 30 gained 0.71%. Meanwhile, the French CAC 40 slipped 0.01%, London’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.14% and Italy’s FTSE MIB surged 2.09%.
Annual inflation rate in the Eurozone increased to 0.9% in January, while producer prices rose 0.8% in December. The IHS Markit Eurozone services PMI rose to 45.4 in January versus a preliminary estimate of 45. UK services PMI declined to 39.5 in January from 49.4 in December.
Economics
US private businesses hired 174,000 workers in January versus a revised 78,000 drop in the previous month.
The IHS Markit services PMI rose to 58.3 in January from a preliminary reading of 57.8.
The ISM services PMI rose to 58.7 in January from 57.7 in December.
US crude oil inventories declined 1 million barrels last week, the Energy Information Administration said.
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Loretta Mester will speak at 5:00 p.m. ET.
Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Charles Evans is set to speak at 5:00 p.m. ET.
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Robert Kaplan will speak at 6:05 p.m. ET.
Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Recommended content
Editors’ Picks
EUR/USD drops to two-year lows below 1.0400 after weak PMI data
EUR/USD stays under bearish pressure and trades at its weakest level in nearly two years below 1.0400. The data from Germany and the Eurozone showed that the business activity in the private sector contracted in early November, weighing on the Euro.
GBP/USD falls to six-month lows below 1.2550, eyes on US PMI
GBP/USD extends its losses for the third successive session and trades at a fresh fix-month low below 1.2550 on Friday. Disappointing PMI data from the UK weigh on Pound Sterling as market focus shift to US PMI data releases.
Gold price refreshes two-week high, looks to build on momentum beyond $2,700 mark
Gold price hits a fresh two-week top during the first half of the European session on Friday, with bulls now looking to build on the momentum further beyond the $2,700 mark. This marks the fifth successive day of a positive move and is fueled by the global flight to safety amid persistent geopolitical tensions stemming from the intensifying Russia-Ukraine war.
S&P Global PMIs set to signal US economy continued to expand in November
The S&P Global preliminary PMIs for November are likely to show little variation from the October final readings. Markets are undecided on whether the Federal Reserve will lower the policy rate again in December.
A new horizon: The economic outlook in a new leadership and policy era
The economic aftershocks of the COVID pandemic, which have dominated the economic landscape over the past few years, are steadily dissipating. These pandemic-induced economic effects are set to be largely supplanted by economic policy changes that are on the horizon in the United States.
Best Forex Brokers with Low Spreads
VERIFIED Low spreads are crucial for reducing trading costs. Explore top Forex brokers offering competitive spreads and high leverage. Compare options for EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/JPY, and Gold.