S&P 500 rises as Nvidia hits record high, investors seek rate cuts: live updates

Stocks were higher Wednesday, following new labor market data that fueled investors’ hopes for an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve.

The S&P 500 gained 0.4%, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.7%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 64 points, or 0.1%.

—Brian Evans

Here are the stocks moving the most in premarket trading:

• Hewlett Packard Enterprise — The technology stock rose 15% after Hewlett Packard reported stronger-than-expected results for its fiscal second quarter.
• Instacart — Shares of the e-commerce company rose nearly 2% after an upgrade to buy from research firm Gordon Haskett.
• CrowdStrike — Shares rose 10% after the cybersecurity company reported better-than-expected first-quarter results and strong guidance.

Read the full list of moving stocks here.

—Lisa Kailai Han

Demand for mortgages fell for the second straight week last week, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index.

Overall mortgage application volume fell 5.2% for the week ending May 31 from the previous week, according to the index. Applications fell as contract rates for 30-year fixed mortgages with loan balances of $766,550 or less rose to 7.07% from 7.05%.

—Brian Evans

U.S.-listed shares of Chinese electric vehicle maker Nio rose more than 1% in premarket trading after Reuters reported, citing three people familiar with the matter, that the company had received regulatory approval to build a third factory in China.

Nio shares have struggled this year, losing more than 42%.

In a regulatory filing, Deere said it plans to “help the company achieve its strategic priorities while reducing overlap and redundancies.” This comes as the company tries to cope with slowing demand for agricultural equipment.

Deere shares were little changed premarket.

—Fred Imbert

European stocks opened higher on Wednesday as investors across the region eagerly await the next meeting of the European Central Bank (ECB).

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was up 0.5% at the start of the session, with all sectors and major exchanges in the green.

Britain’s FTSE index rose 0.3% to 8,258, Germany’s DAX rose 0.5% to 18,494, France’s CAC 40 rose 0.4% to 7,971 and Italy’s FTSE MIB rose 0.4%. at 34,425.

—Shreyashi Sanyal, Lim Hui Jie

Australia’s economy grew 1.1% year-on-year in the first quarter, a slowdown from a revised 1.6% in the fourth quarter.

Growth of 1.1% was also slightly below a Reuters poll’s expectations of 1.2%. On a quarterly basis, Australia’s GDP grew 0.1%, less than the 0.2% expected in the Reuters survey.

Katherine Keenan, head of national accounts at the Australian Bureau of Statistics, noted that “GDP growth was weak in March, with the economy experiencing its weakest annual growth since December 2020.”

-Lim Hui Jie

Services activity in China grew at its fastest pace in 10 months in May, according to a private survey.

The Caixin S&P Global Services Purchasing Managers’ Index rose from 52.5 to 54 in April, the fastest growth since July 2023.

A PMI above 50 separates expansion from contraction.

The survey also showed that new incoming work increased at the fastest rate since May 2023.

-Shreyashi Sanyal

Real wages in Japan fell for the 25th consecutive month in April, which could stifle the Bank of Japan’s plans to raise interest rates and achieve its “virtuous circle” of rising wages and prices .

Government data showed real wages fell 0.7%, a more moderate decline compared to the 2.1% loss recorded in March. The nominal salary stood at 296,884 yen ($1,913.28), up 2.1 percent year-on-year.

This growth accelerated from the 1% nominal wage growth recorded in March, showing its strongest pace of growth in 10 months.

-Lim Hui Jie

Traders are awaiting private employer data from ADP due Wednesday morning to get a glimpse of the state of the labor market.

Economists surveyed by Dow Jones expect these employers to increase their workforce by 175,000 positions in May. That would mark a slowdown from the addition of 192,000 jobs in April.

-Alex Harring

Here are some of the stocks making notable moves after hours:

• CrowdStrike — The cybersecurity company jumped about 7% after delivering better-than-expected quarterly results and guidance.
• Hewlett Packard Enterprise — The computer company added about 11% on stronger-than-expected financial reporting for the fiscal second quarter.

See the full list here.

-Alex Harring

Stock futures were almost flat shortly after 6 p.m. ET.

Dow Jones futures rose nearly 0.1%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures both rose slightly above their flat lines.

-Alex Harring