U.S. markets closed higher Wednesday, driven by encouraging inflation data hinting at a pause in Fed rate hikes and positive forecasts from Target (NYSE: TGT), boosting retail shares.
In economic data, U.S. producer prices fell 0.5% in October, the largest drop since April 2020, contrary to a predicted 0.1% rise. Concurrently, the NY Empire State Manufacturing Index jumped to 9.1 in November, surpassing expectations of -2.8.
In the S&P 500, the energy sector led declines, followed by utilities, while communications services gained significantly.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 0.47% to ...