US close: Stocks register modest gains following softer-than-expected PPI reading

Wall Street stocks closed higher early on Tuesday as market participants digested another key inflation report.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.17% at 33,592.92, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.87% to 3,991.73 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.45% firmer at 11,358.41.

The Dow opened 56.22 points higher on Tuesday, taking a bite out of losses recorded in the previous session.

Tuesday's primary focus was October's producer price index, with the Bureau of Labor Statistics' report for final demand rising 0.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis in October, driven by a 0.6% advance in prices for final demand goods. October's PPI print came in lower than the 0.4% reading expected on the Street, signalling that inflation may be slowing down, and comes hot on the heels of last week's cooler-than-expected consumer price index data.

Elsewhere on the macro front, manufacturing activity in the New York area improved a lot more than expected in November, according to a survey released on Tuesday. The New York Fed's Empire State general business conditions index rose to 4.5 from -9.1 in September. This was well ahead of analysts’ expectations for a reading of -5.0. According to the survey, 33% of respondents reported that conditions had improved over the month, while 29% said they had deteriorated.

Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook said on Tuesday that the US central bank remained focussed on addressing inflation that was "much too high". "Monetary policy is, as we all know, a blunt instrument," Cook said. "The focus for the Federal Reserve is on addressing inflation, and we want a sustainable, strong labour market."

On another note, Michael Barr, the Federal Reserve's vice chairman for supervision, said crypto-related activities needed to be regulated like more traditional financial-services providers as the majority of crypto activities take place outside of traditional banking regulations. However, Barr said that could change over time.

"Recent events in crypto markets have highlighted the risks associated with new asset classes when not accompanied by strong guardrails," said Barr.

In corporate news, home improvement retailer Home Depot delivered better-than-expected top-line growth and earnings for the third quarter, while discount retail giant Walmart swung to a third-quarter loss but beat expectations for revenue, adjusted profit and same-store sales - and set a much better full-year outlook than anticipated.

Target, Lowe's, Macy's, Kohl's, and Foot Locker will report later in the week.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Walmart Inc. (WMT) $147.44 6.54%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $106.71 2.22%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $162.07 2.15%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $311.93 1.63%
Visa Inc. (V) $209.99 1.51%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $95.51 1.30%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $150.04 1.19%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $30.71 1.19%
Boeing Co. (BA) $175.35 1.04%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $188.05 0.80%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $503.01 -2.09%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $179.50 -1.75%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $267.84 -1.63%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $37.70 -1.59%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $234.59 -0.81%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $99.60 -0.75%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $132.94 -0.72%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $51.60 -0.67%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $283.60 -0.60%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $140.49 -0.35%

S&P 500 - Risers

Svb Financial Group (SIVB) $239.93 9.18%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $147.44 6.54%
FMC Technologies Inc. (FTI) $12.35 5.56%
Carnival Corp. (CCL) $11.16 5.28%
Stanley Black & Decker Inc. (SWK) $85.34 5.14%
Mattel Inc. (MAT) $17.46 4.80%
Under Armour Inc. Class A (UAA) $9.61 4.68%
Under Armour, Inc. (UA) $8.33 4.65%
Equifax Inc. (EFX) $207.10 4.64%
Qorvo, Inc. (QRVO) $98.75 4.60%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Capital One Financial Corp. (COF) $103.56 -7.18%
Albemarle Corp. (ALB) $295.86 -6.48%
Synchrony Financial (SYF) $35.92 -4.85%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $3.92 -3.92%
CenturyLink Inc. (LUMN) $6.08 -3.65%
Humana Inc. (HUM) $512.90 -3.23%
Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (BFH) $39.52 -2.92%
Union Pacific Corp. (UNP) $210.66 -2.90%
Centene Corp. (CNC) $79.67 -2.89%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $16.04 -2.73%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $2.36 17.41%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $71.60 9.75%
Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $99.70 9.02%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $54.48 7.14%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $1,020.68 6.37%
Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $29.28 5.63%
Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $160.74 4.80%
QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $126.02 4.32%
Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $232.30 4.03%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $310.20 3.65%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $11.47 -6.82%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $16.04 -2.73%
Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $22.24 -2.03%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $728.73 -1.79%
CSX Corp. (CSX) $31.31 -1.54%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $55.73 -1.17%
Hologic Inc. (HOLX) $74.61 -1.15%
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $76.62 -0.61%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $128.78 -0.60%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $283.60 -0.60%