US open: Equities advance as major indices add to recent gains

(Sharecast News) - Major indices traded higher early on Tuesday, building on solid gains recorded in the previous session.

As of 1450 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.17% at 44,247.32, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.23% to 6,344.42 and the Nasdaq Composite came out of the gate 0.38% firmer at 21,133.64.

The Dow opened 73.68 points higher on Tuesday, extending solid gains recorded in the previous session as US stocks rebounded strongly after some gloomy economic data raised the likelihood that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in an effort to shore up the economy.

In focus early on Tuesday was news that Donald Trump had threatened to impose tariffs on pharmaceuticals imported into the US of as much as 250%, the highest rate he has threatened so far. Trump also announced that the White House would soon introduce fresh tariffs on semiconductor imports "within the next week or so".

On the macro front, US trade deficit narrowed to $60.2bn in June, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the lowest since September 2023, compared to a revised $71.7bn gap in May and forecasts of a $61.6bn shortfall. Imports declined 3.7% to $337.5bn, the lowest since March 2024, whlie exports went down 0.5% to $277.3bn, the lowest since January.

Elsewhere, S&P Global revealed that the US services PMI increased to 55.70 points in July, up from 52.90 points in June, while its composite PMI ticked up to 55.10 points last month, up from 52.90 points in June.

Still to come, last month's the Institute for Supply Management's services PMI will be published at 1500 BST.

In the corporate space, Palantir traded higher in early on Tuesday after the defence technology company revealed Q2 revenues had surpassed $1bn for the first time, while trade bellwether Caterpillar reported Q2 revenues of $16.6bn, slightly above expectations, but adjusted earnings per share of $4.72 fell short of the $4.90 expected on the Street, and drugmaker Pfizer delivered a strong quarter, with revenues of $14.7bn and adjusted EPS of $0.78, beating analyst expectations of $13.5bn and $0.58, respectively.

Elsewhere, KFC and Taco Bell owner Yum! Brands reported Q2 revenue of $1.93bn, up 10% year-over-year, and adjusted EPS of $1.44, narrowly missing expectations of $1.46, while Fox said Q4 revenues of $3.29bn and adjusted EPS of $1.27, driven by Tubi's growth, improved ratings at Fox News, and stronger pricing.

Chipmaker AMD and social media outfit Snap will publish their latest quarterly numbers after the close.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $22.01 1.95%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $19.80 1.51%

Boeing Co. (BA) $224.12 0.80%

3M Co. (MMM) $149.04 0.79%

Walmart Inc. (WMT) $100.34 0.75%

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $436.67 0.68%

Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $264.14 0.44%

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $241.81 0.35%

Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $151.24 0.32%

American Express Co. (AXP) $299.51 0.31%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $118.34 -0.85%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $299.99 -0.65%

Visa Inc. (V) $341.10 -0.31%

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $251.66 -0.26%

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $170.76 -0.16%

Apple Inc. (AAPL) $203.09 -0.13%

McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $304.00 -0.08%

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $79.83 -0.04%

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $535.63 0.00%

Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $0.00 0.00%

S&P 500 - Risers

Ipg Photonics Corp. (IPGP) $83.88 8.29%

Cummins Inc. (CMI) $383.83 6.15%

Broadridge Fin Sol (BR) $261.17 5.12%

Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. (ADM) $56.83 4.55%

Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $24.47 3.99%

Sealed Air Corp. (SEE) $30.10 3.86%

Molson Coors Beverage Co. Class B (TAP) $50.06 2.97%

Duke Energy Corp. (DUK) $127.58 2.75%

Lincoln National Corp. (LNC) $38.79 2.31%

Fluor Corp. (FLR) $40.82 2.08%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Gartner Inc. (IT) $240.57 -28.55%

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $400.44 -15.21%

Transdigm Group Inc. (TDG) $1,418.18 -11.86%

Eaton Corporation plc (ETN) $357.84 -7.00%

Henry Schein Inc. (HSIC) $65.57 -6.36%

Sba Communications Corp. (SBAC) $217.34 -5.67%

Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) $75.50 -4.39%

Resmed Inc. (RMD) $281.80 -3.31%

Amer Water Works (AWK) $142.15 -3.30%

ONEOK Inc. (OKE) $77.36 -3.09%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $3.55 2.16%

PACCAR Inc. (PCAR) $98.18 1.92%

Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $109.71 1.80%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $19.80 1.51%

Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $21.93 1.46%

Texas Instruments Inc (TXN) $185.37 1.44%

Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $214.69 1.44%

NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $131.58 1.00%

Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $138.85 0.78%

Kraft Heinz Co. (KHC) $26.99 0.71%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $400.44 -15.21%

Henry Schein Inc. (HSIC) $65.57 -6.36%

Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $943.21 -1.27%

Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $2,368.49 -1.14%

Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $675.64 -1.05%

Tesla Inc (TSLA) $306.21 -0.98%

Asml Holdings N.V. (ASML) $693.43 -0.85%

Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $86.96 -0.78%

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $70.74 -0.73%

Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $113.73 -0.68%