After moving higher at the open, stocks have turned mixed over the course of early trading on Wednesday. While the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 have managed to remain in positive territory, the Dow has slipped into the red.
Currently, the Dow is down 34.10 points or 0.3 percent at 12,844.18, while the Nasdaq is up 12.70 points or 0.4 percent at 2,944.53 and the S&P 500 is up 1.38 points or 0.1 percent at 1,351.88.
The mixed performance on Wall Street comes as traders are keeping a close eye on the latest developments overseas amid continued uncertainty about the financial situation in Greece.
While remarks from Chinese officials indicating that the country will continue to invest in European government debt to help resolve the debt crisis have generated some buying interest, traders are also digesting news indicating that the second Greek bailout will be delayed.
In U.S. economic news, the New York Federal Reserve recently released a report showing that regional manufacturing activity continued to expand in the month of February, with the index of activity in the sector rising to its highest level in more than a year.
The New York Fed said its general business conditions index rose to 19.5 in February from 13.5 in January, with a positive reading indicating an increase in regional manufacturing activity. Economists had expected the index to edge up to a reading of 14.8.
A separate report from the Federal Reserve showed that U.S. industrial production came in unchanged in January, as an increase in manufacturing output was offset by declines in mining and utilities output.
Most of the major sectors are showing only modest moves on the day, although early strength has emerged among health insurance stocks. The Morgan Stanley Healthcare Payor Index has surged up by 1.5 percent, reaching a record intraday high.
Technology stocks such as semiconductor, electronic storage, and networking stocks have also moved to the upside, while weakness is visible among railroad, steel, and oil service stocks.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region showed strong moves to the upside during trading on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged up by 2.3 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index jumped 2.1 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have turned mixed on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index are both up by 0.4 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have climbed back near the unchanged line after seeing early weakness. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by less than a basis point at 1.929 percent after reaching a high of 1.945 percent.
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