S&P 500 rises for a third day as comeback rally continues

U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday led by energy shares, as the market’s comeback rally extended into a third day.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 40 points. The S&P 500 gained 0.2%, sitting 0.1% from a record. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.2% after closing at a record in the previous session. That was the Nasdaq’s first new high since April 29th as investors have started to rotate back into Big Tech shares.

Energy names including Exxon Mobil and Chevron climbed as oil prices continued to rise. Brent crude topped $75 a barrel to hit a two-year high on Wednesday.

Bitcoin staged an impressive comeback on Tuesday that was carrying through on Wednesday. On Tuesday, the cryptocurrency at one point dipped below $30,000 and erased its gains for 2021. But bitcoin ultimately recouped all of the more than 11% loss and finished the session in positive territory, according to data from Coin Metrics.

At last check, bitcoin was up another 4% to above $34,000 on Wednesday.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell testified before the House of Representatives on Tuesday, which appeared to lift sentiment as he reiterated that inflation pressures will be temporary.

“Powell outlined how the inflation overshoot is from categories directly affected by reopening,” said Ed Moya, senior market analyst at Oanda. “He noted there is extremely strong demand and that the supply has been caught flat-footed.”

For June the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite are in the green, rising 1% and 3.6%, respectively. The Dow, however, is in the red for the month amid weakness in Caterpillar and JPMorgan.

Looking ahead, UBS said it maintains a “positive tactical view on stocks,” but that gains will be unevenly distributed.

“We see potential in regional markets that lagged in the second quarter, particularly China and Japan, as well as among those companies and sectors most exposed to economic reopening, including energy, financials, and US small- and mid-caps,” the firm wrote in a recent note to clients. UBS said investors should take profits in some of the year-to-date winners that might have limited upside ahead, including real estate, consumer discretionary and industrial names.