With traders digesting remarks from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, stocks have seen considerable volatility over the course of the trading day on Wednesday but are moving mostly higher in mid-day trading.
The major averages have moved to the upside in recent trading and are currently posting notable gains. The Dow is up 112.66 points or 0.7 percent at 15,500.24, the Nasdaq is up 19.36 points or 0.6 percent at 3,521.49 and the S&P 500 is up 11.50 points or 0.7 percent at 1,680.66.
The strength currently visible on Wall Street reflects a positive reaction to Bernanke's highly-anticipated testimony before the Joint Economic Committee of Congress.
Bernanke's prepared remarks were seen as supportive of leaving monetary policy unchanged in the near future, providing a boost to the markets.
The Fed chief told the committee that a premature tightening of monetary policy carries a substantial risk of slowing or ending the economic recovery.
However, Bernanke generated some negative sentiment in the Q&A portion of his testimony by suggesting that upbeat economic data could lead the Fed to scale back its asset purchase program in the next few meetings.
Bernanke's remarks were indicative of the mixed outlook for the central bank's asset purchase program recently painted by other Fed officials.
Paul Ashworth, Chief U.S. Economist at Capital Economics, said, "All things considered, we still think that the Fed will begin to curb its asset purchases before the end of the year, with a complete halt sometime in the first half of next year."
Meanwhile, the National Association of Realtors released a report showing a modest increase in existing home sales in the month of April.
NAR said existing home sales climbed 0.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.97 million in April from an upwardly revised 4.94 million in March. Economists had been expecting existing home sales to rise to an annual rate of 5.0 million.
While existing home sales reached their highest annual rate in over three years, NAR said sales remain below underlying demand because of limited inventory and tight credit.
Later in the day, the Federal Reserve is scheduled to release the minutes of the last Federal Open Market Committee meeting held April 30th and May 1st.
The minutes are likely to show signs of the ongoing debate regarding the outlook for the asset purchase program, although the news may be overshadowed by Bernanke's more up-to-date remarks.
Sector News
Gold stocks are seeing substantial strength in mid-day trading, moving back to the upside after giving back some ground on Tuesday. The NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index has surged up by 2.1 percent, climbing further off last Friday's four-month closing low.
The strength among gold stocks comes even though the price of the precious metal has turned lower on the day, with gold for June delivery sliding $2.90 to $1,374.70 an ounce.
Significant strength is also visible among housing stocks, as reflected by the 2.1 percent gain being posted by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index. Luxury homebuilder Toll Brothers (TOL) is leading the sector higher after reporting much stronger than expected second quarter earnings growth.
Pharmaceutical stocks have also shown a strong move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index up by 1.5 percent. With the gain, the index has reached a twelve-year high.
Banking, electronic storage, and healthcare provider stocks are also posting notable gains, moving higher along with most of the major sectors.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in another mixed performance during trading on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged up by 1.6 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell by 0.5 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the upside over the course of the session. While the German DAX Index advanced by 0.7 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.5 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively.
In the bond market, treasuries have turned lower on the day after seeing early strength. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 3.1 basis points at 1.975 percent after hitting a low of 1.888 percent.
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Market Analysis
June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.