Stocks Rebound As Dollar Eases, GE Aerospace Rallies, Oil Prices Top $86: What's Driving Markets Wednesday?

by Piero Cingari Benzinga Staff Writer

Zinger Key Points

ISM Services PMI drops to 51.4 in March, slowest growth in three months, missing forecast of 52.7.
Fed Chair Powell reiterates bank's meeting-by-meeting decision-making approach and hints at possible rate cuts later this year.
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Wall Street is in the green on Wednesday following two sessions of losses for the S&P 500 index, as lower-than-expected ISM services PMI eased concerns that the U.S. economy is overheating and potentially discouraging the Fed to consider rate cuts.

The ISM Services PMI dropped from 52.6 in February to 51.4 in March, indicating the slowest growth in three months and falling short of the forecasted 52.7.

The ADP National Employment Report revealed a stronger-than-expected surge in private payrolls, with employers adding 184,000 new jobs last month, surpassing the predicted 140,000.

The U.S. dollar experienced a slight pullback, declining by 0.4% for the day.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell delivered a keynote address at Stanford University, reiterating that the central bank is making decisions on a meeting-by-meeting basis.

He also said that if the economy progresses as expected, many Federal Open Market Committee members believe it’s likely they will start lowering interest rates sometime this year.

Meanwhile, global commodities continue to trade in an uptrend. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude prices surged to $86 a barrel on Wednesday, marking their highest level since late October 2023 and poised to record their fourth consecutive day of gains.

Gold surged 0.5% to $2,290/oz on track for its eight straight positive day, while silver rallied 2.6% to $26.80.

Wednesday’s Performance In Major US Indices, ETFs

Major Indices	Price	1-day %chg
Russell 2000	2,084.34	0.9%
Nasdaq 100	18,229.17	0.6%
S&P 500	5,228.57	0.4%
Dow Jones	39,272.90	0.3%

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY was 0.4% higher to $520.78, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average DIA was 0.2% higher to $392.50 and the tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust QQQ was 0.6% higher to $443.54, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Sector-wise, the Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund XLI outperformed, up 0.7%, while the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund XLP was the laggard, down 1%.

Wednesday’s Stock Movers

GE Aerospace GE saw a 6.5% increase the day after the company finalized its separation from GE Vernova. Jefferies analyst Sheila Kahyaoglu rated GE Aero stock as a Buy with an initial price target set at $155 per share.
Intel Corp. INTC shares tumbled over 7%, after the company’s chip foundry business incurred an operating loss of $7 billion in 2023.
Blue Owl Capital OWL shares jumped almost 6% after the company agreed to acquire Kuvare Asset Management for $750 million.
Spotify Technology S.A. SPOT rose 6% to levels last seen in November 2021, on reports the music streaming company will hike monthly subscription prices.
Ulta Beauty Inc. ULTA fell 14.5% as executives mentioned a demand slowdown and tough competition in the first quarter. This decline also impacted peers like E.L.F. Beauty ELF, down 10%, Coty Inc. COTY, down 5%, and Estee Lauder Company EL, down 4%.