U.S. Stocks Holding On To Gains After Early Move To The Upside

(RTTNews) - Stocks moved moderately higher early in the session on Tuesday and continue to turn in a strong performance in afternoon trading. The major averages have all moved to the upside after ending last Friday's trading narrowly mixed.

Currently, the major averages are hovering near their best levels of the day. The Dow is up 144.96 points or 0.4 percent at 37,530.93, the Nasdaq is up 63.21 points or 0.4 percent at 15,056.19 and the S&P 500 is up 18.03 points or 0.4 percent at 4,772.66.

A surge by shares of Intel (INTC) has provided a boost to the markets, with the semiconductor giant spiking by 4.6 percent to its best intraday level in well over a year.

The jump by Intel comes following news the Israeli government has agreed to give the company a $3.2 billion grant toward the construction of a new $25 billion chip-making facility in southern Israel.

Stocks also continue to benefit from optimism about the outlook for interest rates following last week's tamer-than-expected consumer price inflation data.

On the heels of the data, CME Group's FedWatch Tool is indicating a 72.7 percent chance the Federal Reserve will cut rates by a quarter point in March.

Overall trading activity has been somewhat subdued, however, as many traders are remain away from their desks following the Christmas weekend.

A lack of major U.S. economic data may also be keeping traders on the sidelines ahead of a relatively quiet week on the U.S. economic front.

Sector News

While most of the major sectors are showing only modest moves, energy stocks continue to see considerable strength amid a sharp increase by the price of crude oil.

With crude for February delivery surging $2.22 to $75.78 a barrel, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index is up by 2.6 percent and the NYSE Arca Oil Index is up by 1.8 percent.

Intel has also helped lead an advance by semiconductor stocks, driving the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index up by 1.6 percent to a record intraday high.

Natural gas, banking and telecom stocks have also moved to the upside over the course of the trading session.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Tuesday, with several markets closed for holidays. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index edged up by 0.2 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index slid by 0.7 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets remained closed on the day in observance of Boxing Day.

In the bond market, treasuries continue to show a lack of direction after ending last Friday's trading roughly flat. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by less than a basis point at 3.897 percent.