Bounceback for tech stocks helps push US indexes higher

NEW YORK — U.S. stock indexes ticked higher on Tuesday as some of the year’s biggest winners picked themselves back up following recent stumbles.

Technology stocks recovered some of their sharp losses from Monday and the prior week, which helped offset drops for telecom stocks and other areas of the market.

Keeping score: The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 8 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 2,647, as of 11:15 a.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 22, or 0.1 per cent, to 24,312, and the Nasdaq composite rose 59, or 0.9 per cent, to 6,834.

More stocks fell than rose on the New York Stock Exchange.

Tech climbs: Chip makers and internet companies helped lead the way, with technology stocks in the S&P 500 rising 1.3 per cent. It was the biggest gain by far of the 11 sectors that make up the index.

Micron Technology jumped $1.92, or 4.8 per cent, to $41.82, for example, and Nvidia rose $6.00, or 3.23 per cent, to $192.66.

It’s a return to dominance for tech stocks, which have been this year’s biggest winners due to strengthening profits and expectations for continued growth. Tech stocks in the S&P 500 rose twice as much as the overall index through the first 11 months of the year.

Tech began stumbling last week as expectations ramped up that Congress would be able to push through its plan to overhaul the tax system. Technology companies already pay some of the lowest effective tax rates of companies in the S&P 500, so they have less to gain from the proposal. Plus, some skeptics have argued that tech stocks had become too pricey relative to their earnings.

That led to a 1.9 per cent drop for tech stocks in the S&P 500 on Monday, as investors shifted out of the sector and into companies that stand to benefit most from lower corporate tax rates, such as telecoms and financial companies.

The Senate passed its version of a tax overhaul over the weekend, and it will try to reconcile that with the House’s version before sending it to President Donald Trump to sign.

Revved up: AutoZone rose after reporting higher revenue and profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. The auto parts company’s stock rose $6.77, or 1 per cent, to $716.54.

AutoZone’s is the latest in a long line of corporate profit reports that have shown not only growth but more than Wall Street had forecast. The improving earnings have been one of the main reasons for the S&P 500’s roughly 18 per cent climb this year to record heights.

Markets abroad: European stock markets were mixed as negotiations continue for the United Kingdom’s pending departure from the European Union.

France’s CAC 40 dipped 0.1 per cent, and Germany’s DAX was up 0.1 per cent. The FTSE 100 in London fell 0.1 per cent.

In Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index slipped 0.4 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dropped 1 per cent and the Kospi in South Korea gained 0.3 per cent.

Yields: Yields on Treasurys inched higher, as bond prices dipped. The yield on the 10year Treasury note rose to 2.38 per cent from 2.37 per cent late Monday.

Currencies: The dollar ticked up to 112.83 Japanese yen from 112.60 yen late Monday. The euro dipped to $1.1823 from $1.1855, and the British pound fell to $1.3442 from $1.3471.

Commodities: Benchmark U.S. crude rose 4 cents to $57.49 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, gained 5 cents to $62.50 per barrel.

Gold slipped $11.50 to $1,266.20 per ounce, silver lost 27 cents to $16.11 per ounce and copper dropped 12 cents to $2.97 per pound.

AP Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach in Tokyo contributed to this report.