US open: Major indices still firmly on track for worst year in over a decade despite early gains
Wall Street stocks were in the green early on Wednesday but the US stock market remained firmly on track for its worst year since 2008.
As of 1515 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.11% at 33,279.71, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.20% to 3,836.84 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.34% firmer at 10,388.68.
The Dow opened 38.15 points higher on Wednesday, extending modest gains recorded in the previous session.
Oil prices were in focus early on Wednesday after Russia banned oil sales to countries and companies that comply with a price cap agreed upon by Western nations earlier in December. West Texas Intermediate futures were down 1.80% at $78.10 per barrel and Brent Crude futures were 1.85% weaker at $82.77 a barrel.
On the macro front, mortgage applications rose 0.9% week-on-week in the seven days ended 16 December, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America, following a 3.2% advance in the previous week.
Elsewhere, US pending home sales declined by 37.8% year-on-year in November, according to the National Association of Realtors, the 18th consecutive monthly drop and the biggest fall since November 2021.
Finally, the Richmond Fed's manufacturing index rose from a print of -9 in November to 1 in December - the highest reading since April.
In the corporate space, Tesla shares were up more than 4% in early trading, reclaiming some of yesterday's heavy losses driven by a Wall Street Journal article that claimed the electric carmaker would continue a weeklong production halt at its Shanghai facility amid a fresh onslaught of Covid-19 cases.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
Dow Jones - Risers
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $39.25 2.19%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $243.14 1.36%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $179.63 1.26%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $117.56 1.13%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $130.66 0.94%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $153.95 0.87%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $51.19 0.65%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $64.21 0.61%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $142.42 0.54%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $190.48 0.53%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $86.37 -1.86%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $130.03 -1.39%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $341.97 -1.02%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $38.31 -0.83%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $236.96 -0.74%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $25.94 -0.57%
American Express Co. (AXP) $146.39 -0.43%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $266.84 -0.27%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $263.39 -0.20%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $177.43 -0.03%
S&P 500 - Risers
Foot Locker Inc. (FL) $37.00 4.52%
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $84.33 4.47%
VF Corp. (VFC) $27.16 4.18%
Perrigo Company plc (PRGO) $34.08 3.21%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $52.06 3.07%
Estee Lauder Co. Inc. (EL) $248.29 3.02%
Tractor Supply Company (TSCO) $223.09 2.78%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $39.25 2.19%
Hanesbrands Inc. (HBI) $6.23 2.13%
Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX) $38.88 2.05%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $141.21 -7.14%
Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) $33.94 -5.96%
Albemarle Corp. (ALB) $214.16 -5.64%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $2.03 -5.58%
Gap Inc. (GPS) $11.49 -4.73%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $284.17 -3.66%
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH) $12.54 -3.54%
H&R Block Inc. (HRB) $37.79 -3.47%
CF Industries Holdings Inc. (CF) $87.60 -3.46%
CME Group Inc. (CME) $167.68 -3.26%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $84.33 4.47%
Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $116.48 4.36%
Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $35.46 4.32%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $58.80 4.18%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $52.06 3.07%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $73.14 2.88%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $31.17 1.90%
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $464.00 1.67%
Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG) $1,998.27 1.36%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $843.84 1.23%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $109.10 -11.41%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $141.21 -7.14%
Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $1.51 -6.79%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $284.17 -3.66%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $854.30 -2.73%
Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $83.04 -2.59%
Asml Holdings N.V. (ASML) $537.18 -2.57%
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $79.59 -2.18%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $711.35 -2.12%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $87.93 -2.09%