U.S. stocks higher at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.60%

Investing.com – U.S. stocks were higher after the close on Wednesday, as gains in the Oil&Gas, Industrials and Technology sectors led shares higher.

At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.60%, while the S&P 500 index added 1.49%, and the NASDAQ Composite index added 1.54%.

The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE), which rose 12.29% or 12.68 points to trade at 115.89 at the close. Meanwhile, Boeing Co (NYSE:BA) added 4.09% or 7.71 points to end at 196.00 and Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT) was up 2.80% or 6.59 points to 241.73 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (NASDAQ:WBA), which fell 2.35% or 0.93 points to trade at 38.60 at the close. Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) declined 0.11% or 0.10 points to end at 86.92 and McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) was up 0.34% or 0.91 points to 268.16.

The top performers on the S&P 500 were Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE) which rose 12.29% to 115.89, APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) which was up 5.76% to settle at 46.67 and Etsy Inc (NASDAQ:ETSY) which gained 5.69% to close at 134.33.

The worst performers were Host Hotels&Resorts Inc (NASDAQ:HST) which was down 6.09% to 15.88 in late trade, Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (NASDAQ:WBA) which lost 2.35% to settle at 38.60 and Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) which was down 2.18% to 31.38 at the close.

The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Gorilla Technology Group Inc (NASDAQ:GRRR) which rose 69.79% to 4.74, SINTX Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:SINT) which was up 57.16% to settle at 11.74 and Rekor Systems Inc (NASDAQ:REKR) which gained 56.45% to close at 0.93.

The worst performers were Meiwu Technology Co Ltd (NASDAQ:WNW) which was down 83.43% to 0.32 in late trade, Core Scientific Inc (NASDAQ:CORZ) which lost 75.53% to settle at 0.05 and Icecure Medical Ltd (NASDAQ:ICCM) which was down 46.92% to 1.38 at the close.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 2419 to 680 and 89 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 2470 rose and 1228 declined, while 145 ended unchanged.

Shares in Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) fell to 52-week lows; losing 2.18% or 0.70 to 31.38. Shares in Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT) rose to 52-week highs; rising 2.80% or 6.59 to 241.73. Shares in Meiwu Technology Co Ltd (NASDAQ:WNW) fell to all time lows; falling 83.43% or 1.61 to 0.32. Shares in Core Scientific Inc (NASDAQ:CORZ) fell to all time lows; falling 75.53% or 0.16 to 0.05.

The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 6.56% to 20.07.

Gold Futures for February delivery was down 0.04% or 0.65 to $1,824.75 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in February rose 2.91% or 2.22 to hit $78.45 a barrel, while the February Brent oil contract rose 2.93% or 2.34 to trade at $82.33 a barrel.

EUR/USD was unchanged 0.08% to 1.06, while USD/JPY rose 0.47% to 132.32.

The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.24% at 103.85.