Financial stocks led the way on increasing optimism about President Donald Trump's economic agenda and increased expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will proceed with interest rate hikes in the year ahead.
Technology giant Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) hit a new high on news that Warren Buffett's investment firm almost quadrupled its stake in the iPhone manufacturer. According to a regulatory filing, Buffett's firm increased its total stake to 57.4 million shares last quarter.
Let's look at the numbers from Wednesday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:
Dow Jones: 20,611.86; +107.45; +0.52%
S&P 500: 2,349.25; +11.67; +0.50%
Nasdaq: 5,819.44; +36.87; +0.64%
Now, here's a look at today's most important market events and stocks, plus a preview of Thursday's economic calendar.
The Dow Jones posted a 107-point gain Wednesday.
Shares of Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) offered the biggest boost to the Dow after activist investor Nelson Peltz announced a $3.5 billion stake in the firm. This is the third-largest stake that Peltz's Trian Fund Management has ever taken in a company. Wall Street expects that Peltz will take an active role in helping the company divest its unprofitable brands and attempt to bolster its sales.
Don't Miss: Know Exactly What to Buy, What to Sell, and How to Protect Your Money in 2017
Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen appeared before the House and defended the central bank's role in helping the economy recover in the wake of the Great Recession. The Janet Yellen speech today was important because Yellen acknowledged that the U.S. economy remains weak. However, she defended the Federal Reserve's policies and said that they have done more to help the U.S. economy than hinder it.
"The economy has recovered more quickly, for example, than ... European Union economies have in the aftermath of the crisis," Yellen said during her statement before Congress. "The Federal Reserve has put in place highly accommodative monetary policies meant to spur spending in the economy and restore low unemployment or to achieve the goal of maximizing employment and price stability as assigned to us by Congress."
It wasn't just Apple that received a Buffett bump Wednesday. Airline stocks were on the rise on word that Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK.A) had boosted its stake in the industry.
President Donald Trump welcomed the chief executives of Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT), Best Buy Co. (NYSE: BBY), and six other major domestic retailers. During the meeting at the White House, Trump and the executives discussed corporate tax reform, infrastructure spending, and Trump's plan for a cross-border tax on foreign-made products. According to CNBC, retail executives were highly critical of the border tax proposal and said that such a fiscal policy plan was both "risky and unproven."
Related: These Five Steps Can Fix America's Markets in 2017
Crude oil prices were falling in afternoon trading after the Energy Information Administration announced a record build in U.S. crude inventories last week. The government agency reported that domestic crude stocks increased by 9.5 million barrels last week. That figure far outpaced analyst expectations by nearly three times the consensus forecast. The news was enough to offset increased optimism that OPEC members and Russia are on pace to reach their production cut targets in the months ahead.
The WTI crude oil price today fell 0.2%. Brent crude dipped nearly 0.4%.
While everyone seemed to focus on Janet Yellen's testimony, another big story that was sliding under the radar was happening in Congress.
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During a House Ways and Means Committee meeting Tuesday, Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) pushed on with his pressure to have President Trump's tax returns released. In fact, it appears that a war is set to take place on Capitol Hill as Pascrell is demanding at least 10 years of Donald Trump's tax returns.
Here's more on the story that could rock Washington in the months to come.
Trump's Secret Weapon Against Chinese Aggression: Hostilities in the South China Sea now seem imminent, and the Trump administration could be on the verge of its first major crisis. But thanks to a small $6 U.S. defense firm with a top-secret new technology, China is about to be taken to the woodshed. Frankly, you have to see it to believe it...
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About the Author
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.