Dow surges 346 points as trade worries ease

Stocks rallied Wednesday with the Dow Jones Industrial Average posting a triple-digit gain, boosted by gains in the industrial and financial sectors.

The Dow added 346.41 points, or 1.4%, to 25,146.39. The S&P 500 rose 23.55 points, or 0.86%, to 2,772.35. The Nasdaq Composite climbed to another record high, gaining 51.38 points, or 0.67%, to 7,689.24.

Industrial names were climbing as investors shrugged off mixed reports on trade ahead of the G7 meeting, while financials were boosted by the 10-year Treasury yield approaching a two-week high.

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
JPM JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. 302.74 -9.73 -3.11%
CAT CATERPILLAR INC. 629.00 -17.89 -2.77%
BA THE BOEING CO. 249.00 +1.32 +0.53%

The yield increased in anticipation that the Federal Reserve will hike rates when it meets next week.

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
SP500 S&P 500 6796.86 -143.15 -2.06%
I:DJI DOW JONES AVERAGES 48488.59 -870.74 -1.76%
I:COMP NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX 22954.322403 -561.07 -2.39%

On Wednesday, both the Nasdaq and the Russell 2000 touched all-time highs while the Dow climbed back above 25,000. Dow components Microsoft, Visa and Nike touched record highs.

Economic data released Wednesday included the April trade deficit, which fell to a 7-month low as exports set a record. First-quarter productivity was revised to a 0.4% annual pace compared to the 0.7% originally reported.

Oil futures fell 1.2% to $64.73 a barrel, while gold futures were little changed.