US open: Stocks trade higher at the opening bell

Wall Street stocks were in the green early on Wednesday as major indices try to build on what has generally been a strong start to 2023.

As of 1520 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.20% at 33,771.87, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.49% to 3,938.46 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.81% firmer at 10,829.49.

The Dow opened 67.77 points higher on Wednesday, extending gains recorded in the previous session after comments from Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell.

News from Finnish think tank the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air that revealed Russian revenues from fossil fuel exports tumbled in December were drawing an amount of investor attention after the opening bell, with the first month of the European Union's ban on seaborne imports of crude from the nation and the G-7's price cap costing Moscow roughly $171.8m per day and significantly hampering Vladimir Putin's ability to fund his war in neighbouring Ukraine.

However, Oleg Ustenko, economic advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, stated that while it was "very good news" that Western measures had hurt Russia, they were "definitely not enough" and called for a price cap against the Kremlin of $20 to $30 a barrel - markedly lower than the current $60-per-barrel price cap.

On the macro front, mortgage applications rose 1.2% to start off 2023, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America, following a 10.3% nosedive to wrap up 2022. Applications to refinance a home loan soared 5.1%, while those to purchase edged 0.5% lower.

No major corporate earnings were slated for release on Wednesday.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Home Depot Inc. (HD) $326.65 1.88%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $57.53 1.88%
Boeing Co. (BA) $209.75 1.48%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $231.72 1.25%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $37.08 1.04%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $126.92 0.86%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $489.22 0.66%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $359.26 0.53%
3M Co. (MMM) $128.69 0.44%
American Express Co. (AXP) $152.41 0.27%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $144.86 -1.75%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $41.33 -1.47%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $29.18 -0.88%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $272.38 -0.55%
Visa Inc. (V) $219.88 -0.55%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $61.83 -0.49%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $110.33 -0.43%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $174.50 -0.38%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $249.79 -0.29%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $268.19 -0.27%

S&P 500 - Risers

Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $93.14 3.64%
Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $97.99 3.54%
Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings (LH) $252.55 2.96%
IQVIA Holdings Inc. (IQV) $221.82 2.93%
H&R Block Inc. (HRB) $37.41 2.88%
CenturyLink Inc. (LUMN) $5.76 2.86%
Best Buy Co. Inc. (BBY) $86.63 2.80%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $34.21 2.67%
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO) $583.06 2.65%
Hilton Inc (HLT) $132.83 2.60%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Teleflex Inc. (TFX) $242.54 -6.53%
Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $259.33 -4.43%
Stryker Corp. (SYK) $257.80 -2.28%
AbbVie Inc (ABBV) $156.52 -1.95%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $144.86 -1.75%
Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX) $45.31 -1.63%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $41.33 -1.47%
Dxc Technology Company (DXC) $28.07 -1.44%
Mosaic Company (MOS) $44.22 -1.37%
Allstate Corp (The) (ALL) $139.46 -1.27%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $93.14 3.64%
Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $97.99 3.54%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $122.82 3.34%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $34.21 2.67%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $156.30 2.05%
Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $21.22 1.97%
Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $1.93 1.84%
Liberty Global plc Series C (LBTYK) $21.92 1.84%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $148.29 1.65%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $126.04 1.63%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $259.33 -4.43%
Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $36.81 -2.23%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $62.74 -1.44%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $157.15 -1.22%
QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $115.62 -1.10%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $454.04 -1.00%
Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $569.41 -0.96%
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $78.81 -0.93%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $29.18 -0.88%
Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $86.47 -0.77%