The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose after the Fed minutes showed that smaller hikes are in tap as the committee sees "sufficiently restrictive policy". The blue chip index closed higher by 0.3% after the news.
The S&P 500 also gained, adding 0.6% after reclaiming the 4,000 level on Tuesday. The Nasdaq led with a 1% gain at market close.
The small-cap Russell 2000 index lagged with a 0.25% gain.
Nasdaq composite volume surged while NYSE volume fell compared with Tuesday levels.
The S&P 500 has given back gains in 51 out of 72 years between Thanksgiving and year's end, according to Dow Jones Market Data. Since 1950, the 50-year average performance in the 40-odd trading sessions between those dates booked just an 1.8% gain.
Crude oil fell more than 4% to $77.57 per barrel as confusion about the Russian price cap increases.
According to reports, the final negotiated cap among the G-7 will likely be $65 to $70 per barrel. That may be too high to effectively sanction Russian oil trades.
Anxiety that a low cap will force Russia to cut oil output could yield a more accommodative stance. Meanwhile, U.S. gasoline inventories were higher than expected.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell 5 basis points to 3.7%.
Economic Data
First-time jobless claims rose more than the expected 225,000. In signs of a cooling labor market, initial claims of 240,000 rose from last week's 222,000.
Durable goods rose 1% in October, raising hopes of a less severe economic slowdown in 2023, rather than something steeper. Durable goods rose 0.2% in August and 0.3% in September.
However, the S&P Global Purchasing Managers Index signaled contraction in October.
Services activity fell to 46.1, down from 47.8 in October. Manufacturing activity also fell below the threshold of 50, to 47.6. The PMI index measures sales, inventory, employment and prices data in the private sector. The data is likely pressuring Dow Jones and other indexes.
Home sales rose in October, bucking rising interest rates and high prices. Seasonally adjusted new-home sales rose to 632,000. The Northeast and the South saw increases while the Midwest and West saw declines.
The stock market is closed on Thursday for Thanksgiving. Friday's short session will close out the week.
New York has banned Bitcoin mining that does not use renewable energy, but mining new digit assets demands high energy usage. The ban could have a domino effect in the U.S., which currently is the largest mining hub for Bitcoin.
Rally Could Use A Holiday; 5 Stocks Near Buy Points
Dow Jones Stocks
Apple rose and is holding above its 50-day line. Other Dow leaders are notching small gains.
Salesforce and Microsoft also gained ground. Microsoft is above its 50-day line while CRM is testing it.
Energy stocks in the IBD 50 pared earlier some losses at market close. New Fortress Energy is up 0.2% but Matador Resources plunged over 3%. Murphy USA also fell 1%.
Stocks Moving Today
IBD Leaderboard stock Deere lifted 5% after earnings. Sales got a boost from higher prices for agriculture and construction equipment. Shares are now extended from a cup-with-handle base and buy point of 406.12.
On Tuesday, Nordstrom added to several earnings reports from the retail sector. Sales of $3.4 billion fell 3% while earnings per share of 20 cents fell a steep 49% from the previous year. Shares fell 4% in today's market.
Shares of Tesla rose over 7% after Citigroup analyst Itay Michaeli upgraded the stock to neutral from sell with a new price target of $176.
AMC rose after Amazonrevealed plans to invest $1 billion a year for movie releases in theaters. AMC shares were up 5% today.
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