US open: Stocks advance ahead of Fed minutes despite mixed housing data

US equity markets gained ground early on Wednesday, as investors awaited the release of the minutes from the latest Federal Reserve meeting.

Shortly before 1500 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 60 points to 17,549.73, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were eight and 21 points higher respectively.

The Fed will publish the meeting of its 27-28 October meeting at 1900 GMT, with investors expecting to find further clues over the timing of a first rate hike.

“In the very near term, much of will hinge on the FOMC minutes later this evening,” said Brenda Kelly, head analyst at London Capital Group.

“With the dollar already in demand, we may well see additional surges in the greenback.

“Bearing in mind that these minutes were recorded prior to the fairly stellar jobs number in October, one could expect that any perceived hawkishness will effectively be taken as a green light for a rate hike in December.”

Housing starts decline

According to the Commerce Department, housing starts fell 11% last month to 1.06m, against expectations for a reading of 1.16m.

Meanwhile, housing starts in September were revised down from an annual rate of 1.21m to 1.19m, the report added.

However, permits for new construction, which are a closely-followed gauge of future demand, rebounded 4.1% to an annual rate of 1.15m, while permits for single-family homes rose 2.4% to 711,000, the highest level since the end of 2007.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of application activity, which covers home purchase demand and refinancing demand, climbed 6.2% in the week ended 13 November.

Still to come, Dallas Fed President Rob Kaplan will give a speech in economic conditions and Fed policy in Houston at 1700 GMT.

Target slid 4.90% despite reporting better-than-expected third quarter sales and lifting its full year guidance, while Staples slid 0.84% after its sales fell short of estimates.

Home Depot slid 0.29%, even though analysts at RBC Capital lifted their target price on the stock from $137 to $140, while Apple gained 2.65% after analysts at Goldman Sachs added the stock to their conviction buy list

Keurig Green Mountain and Salesforce.com are among those reporting after the market close.

Elsewhere, Asian equity markets endured a mixed session, as investors remained edgy ahead of the release of the minutes from the latest Fed meeting, while European stocks lost ground.

The dollar was broadly flat against the yen and the pound but lost 0.24% against the euro, while gold spot was flat at $1,070.32.

Oil prices staged a solid rebound, with West Texas Intermediate gaining 1.36% to $41.23 a barrel and Brent rising 1.87% to $44.40 a barrel.