The U.S. stock market is bouncing back Wednesday after pressure eased on Wall Street from the bond market and oil prices gave back some of their big gains.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.7 per cent toward its first gain in four days and pulled near its all-time high set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 323 points, or 0.7 per cent, as of 11:15 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 1.1 per cent higher.
Stocks got a lift from easing yields in the bond market, which offered relief following rapid ascents that had rattled stock markets worldwide. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.60 per cent from 4.67 per cent late Tuesday, a notable move for the bond market, which measures things in hundredths of a percentage point.
The 10-year yield has been jumping from below four per cent before the war with Iran, along with other yields around the world, because of worries that the fighting will keep oil prices high, among other factors. High yields in turn slow economies and weigh on prices for stocks, bitcoin and all kinds of other investments. Besides driving up rates for mortgages, they could also limit companies’ borrowing to build the artificial-intelligence data centers that have been helping to support the U.S. economy’s growth recently.
Yields eased Wednesday as oil prices pulled back some more. The price for a barrel of Brent crude fell four per cent to US$106.87, though it remains well above its roughly US$70 level from before the war.
A report showing less bad inflation in the United Kingdom than economists expected also helped to keep yields calmer worldwide.
With yields easing, tech stocks helped lead Wall Street higher.
Nvidia rose 2.1 per cent and was the single strongest force lifting the S&P 500 because of its immense size.
It’s set to report its latest quarterly results after trading ends for the day, which will likely be the market’s main event. The chip company has routinely blown past analysts’ profit expectations each quarter thanks to voracious demand for AI, and how it does could determine whether AI stocks and the larger U.S. market can maintain their record-setting rally.
Other tech stocks leading the market Thursday included Advanced Micro Devices, up 7.6 per cent, and Intel, up six per cent.
Outside of tech, the company behind TJ Maxx, Marshalls and other stores climbed 5.9% after delivering stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. CEO Ernie Herrman also said the current quarter is off to a good start, and TJX raised its forecasts for revenue and profit this year.
Red Robin Gourmet Burgers jumped 22.3 per cent, and Cava Group rallied 6.5 per cent following their own better-than-expected profit reports. Such results raise hopes that households can keep spending and driving the economy, even though they’re contending with high gasoline prices and widespread discouragement about economic conditions.
Most big U.S. companies have likewise reported better profits for the start of 2026 than analysts expected, which has helped stocks run to records. Stock prices tend to follow the path of corporate profits over the long term.
On the losing side of Wall Street was Target, which fell 4.4 per cent even though the retailer reported better profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. A new CEO, Michael Fiddelke, is trying to turn around the company and boost its revenue.
Expectations may have been even higher for the company’s performance after Target’s stock came into the day with a gain of more than 30 per cent for the year so far, quadruple the S&P 500’s gain.
In stock markets abroad, indexes rose in Europe following weaker finishes across Asia. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.2 per cent as the yield on the 10-year Japanese government bond remained near its highest level since 1997.
Stan Choe, The Associated Press. AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.