Tech Stocks Helping Lead Rebound On Wall Street

(RTTNews) - Stocks have moved mostly higher in morning trading on Wednesday, largely offsetting the weakness seen in the previous session. The major averages have all moved to the upside, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq leading the advance.

The major averages have pulled back off their best levels in recent trading but remain firmly positive. The Nasdaq is up 127.37 points or 1.1 percent at 11,843.45, the S&P 500 is up 34.39 points or 0.9 percent at 4,005.66 and the Dow is up 173.12 points or 0.5 percent at 32,567.37.

The strength on Wall Street partly reflects a rebound by technology stocks, with the Nasdaq regaining ground after closing lower for two straight sessions.

Semiconductor stocks have helped lead the recovery in the tech sector, driving the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index up by 2.1 percent.

The index closed lower in the three previous sessions after reaching its best closing level in almost a year last Thursday.

Micron (MU) is posting a standout gain after the chipmaker reported weaker than expected fiscal second quarter results but executives predicted a strong 2025 due to a boost from artificial intelligence.

Considerable strength is also visible among computer hardware stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent gain being posted by the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index.

Outside the tech sector, interest rate-sensitive utilities and commercial real estate stocks are seeing significant strength, with the Dow Jones Utility Average and the Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate Index climbing by 1.6 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively.

The markets are also benefiting from a continued easing of concerns about contagion from the recent turmoil in the banking sector.

U.S.-listed shares of UBS Group (UBS) are moving sharply higher after the Swiss lender announced Sergio Ermotti will return as CEO to steer its massive takeover of Credit Suisse (CS).

In the U.S. economic news, the National Association of Realtors released a report showing pending home sales in the U.S. unexpectedly increased for the third straight month in February.

NAR said its pending home sales index climbed by 0.8 percent to 83.2 in February after spiking by 8.1 percent to 82.5 in January. Economists had expected pending home sales to slump by 3.0 percent.

The pending home sales index reached its highest level since hitting 88.3 last August but was still down by 21.1 percent compared to a year ago.

A pending home sale is one in which a contract was signed but not yet closed. Normally, it takes four to six weeks to close a contracted sale.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index jumped by 1.3 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged by 2.1 percent.

The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index has shot up by 1.2 percent, the German DAX Index is up by 1.0 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.9 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries have shown a notable turnaround after seeing early weakness. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 1.7 basis points at 3.547 percent after reaching a high of 3.610 percent.