US open: Stocks record early gains, S&P 500 nears all-time high

Wall Street stocks traded higher after the bell on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 hovering near its record high following a somewhat muted session the day before.

As of 1530 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.31% at 34,683.53, while the S&P 500 was 0.30% firmer at 4,214.53 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.21% stronger at 13,764.67.

The Dow opened 108.22 points higher on Wednesdays extending modest gains recorded in the previous session after traders returned from an extended break for the Memorial Day long weekend.

In focus at the open, AMC shares surged 27% in early trade after rocketing 22% on Tuesday, while reopening plays like Carnival, United and American Airlines also traded slightly higher.

Zoom Video shares advanced after reporting a 191% year-on-year first-quarter sales growth.

On the macro front, mortgage applications fell 4.0% across the US in the week ended 28 May, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, following a 4.2% drop a week earlier. The decline dropped the index to 665.9, the lowest print since February 2020. Applications to refinance a home loan were down 4.6% and purchases declined 3.1%.

Still to come, the Federal Reserve's Beige Book was scheduled for release at 1900 BST, while Fed heads Charles Evans, Patrick Harker, Raphael Bostic and Robert Kaplan will all deliver comments throughout the course of the day.