4:17pm: Nearly 80% of S&P 500 component earnings reports have topped expectations
The Dow closed Wednesday up 109 points, 0.3%, at 35,061, the Nasdaq Composite improved 4 points to 14,358 and the S&P 500 added 11 points, 0.2%, to 4,566. The small-cap Russell 2000 index gained 9 points, 0.4%, to 1,985.
The DJIA posted its eight-straight winning session, the index's longest such streak since September 2019.
Earnings season has been one reason why. the benchmarks have done well. Of S&P 500 components that have reported earnings, 78% have exceeded expectations, according to FactSet data.
After the bell, earnings season continues with reports from Tesla, Netflix, United Airlines and IBM, among others.
12:05pm: Dow sees longest winning streak in four years
US stocks were higher in noon trading as corporate earnings continue to come in strong.
At midday, the Dow gained 190 points to 35,142, while the S&P 500 added 21 points at 4,576 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 78 points to 14,432.
“Bank earnings are better than feared and are pushing the episodic crisis from the spring further into the rearview mirror and (thus far) continue to trade like a soft landing will occur,” DWS Group head of fixed income and trading George Catrambone said.
Notable movers included shares of Carvana Co, which soared 33% after the used car retailer announced a deal to reduce its debt by $1.2 billion.
9:35am: Investors eye earnings from Netflix, Tesla
US stocks opened higher as investors continued to digest earnings from the likes of Goldman Sachs ahead of highly anticipated reports from Netflix and Tesla due after the closing bell.
A strong start to the earnings season, with 80% of the 38 S&P 500 companies who have reported to date exceeding expectations, has helped ease investors’ recession concerns.
“This news coupled with last week's slower than expected inflation data could help bolster the case that U.S. economy is able to avoid a hard landing, despite the steepest interest rate hiking cycle by the Federal Reserve in decades,” noted FOREX.com market analyst Fiona Cincotta.
“Investment banks have been dialling back their expectations for a mild recession this year thanks mainly to the resilience of the U.S. consumer.”
Just after the market opened, the Nasdaq had added 55 points or 0.4% at 14,408 points, the Dow Jones had gained 116 points or 0.3% at 35,068 points, and the S&P 500 was up 16 points or 0.4% at 4,571 points.
7.45am: Breather needed
US blue chips are expected to start a touch higher on Wednesday, consolidating after the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) posted its longest winning streak since March 2021 in the previous session, with another flood of corporate earnings to dominate attention.
In pre-market trading, futures for the DJIA were 0.1% firmer, while those for the Nasdaq 100 also added 0.1%, but contracts for the S&P 500 edged 0.02% lower.
On Tuesday, the DJIA notched up a seventh straight positive session, rising 366.58 points, or 1.1% to close at 34,951, while the S&P 500 gained 0.7%, and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.8%. All three major indexes recorded their highest closes since April 2022.
The US second-quarter earnings season has got off to a good start - of the 38 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported results so far, 82% have exceeded expectations, according to FactSet data.
On the earnings slate for Wednesday, Goldman Sachs is set to report before the opening bell, while Netflix, Tesla, IBM and United Airlines will post earnings after the close.
On the data front, June housing starts, which will be released at 8.30am ET, are expected to have dropped by 9.3%, according to economists, down from the big 21.7% jump posted in May.
Meanwhile, June building permits are anticipated to have declined 0.7%, according to Dow Jones consensus estimates. That would be down from a 5.2% gain the previous month.
TickMill Group’s market analyst Patrick Munnelly commented: "Stateside, the housing sector has been impacted by higher interest rates, and today's housing starts and building permits data will provide insights into the sector's recent performance.
"Yesterday's retail sales report showed resilient consumer demand, and market participants will be interested to see if the housing data support that trend."