Stocks rose on Wednesday as U.S. Treasury yields took a breather from the recent run-up that sent them to multi-year highs.
The Dow Jones Industrials reasserted themselves 294.52 points to pause for lunch Wednesday at 53,061.40, boosted by a rise in shares of health-care stocks such as Johnson & Johnson, Merck and Amgen.
The S&P 500 regained 46.42 points to 7,677.89.
The NASDAQ Composite popped $133.90 points to 26,233.67.
The benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury note yield hit a high of 4.814% on the day, a level not seen since November 2023. Yields in the U.K., Germany and France also rose. In Japan, the 10-year government yield traded around multi-decade highs.
Energy Secretary Chris Wright told CNBC Wednesday that more than 17 million barrels of oil moved through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday. That’s the highest level since the Iran war broke out in February.
The moves higher in oil come as the U.S. launched more military strikes on Iran, raising concern that the conflict could escalate once more.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury were lower, raising yields to 4.8% from Tuesday’s 4.79%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices recovered 50 cents to $90.72 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices brightened $19.80 to $4,416.20 U.S. an ounce.
