Markets Right Now: Tech stocks gain, but indexes end mixed

NEW YORK — The latest on developments in financial markets (All times local):

4:00 p.m.

Stock indexes are finishing mostly higher after a mixed day on Wall Street as gains in technology companies were offset by weakness in other sectors.

Apple jumped 6 per cent to its highest level in more than a year Wednesday after reporting a day earlier that sales of iPhones turned higher after a slump.

High-dividend stocks like utilities fell as bond yields rose.

The Dow Jones industrial average edged up 25 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 19,890.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose a fraction to 2,279. The Nasdaq composite, which is heavily weighted with technology stocks, gained 27 points, or 0.5 per cent, to 5,642.

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

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.48 per cent.

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11:45 a.m.

Stocks are mostly lower in midday trading on Wall Street after an early rally ran out of steam.

Utilities and energy stocks fell the most, while banks and technology companies gained.

Apple jumped 5.6 per cent to its highest price in more than a year after saying that its iPhone sales improved in its last quarter, breaking a slump.

The Dow Jones industrial average edged up 5 points to 19,870

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 3 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 2,275. The Nasdaq composite was up 12 points, or 0.2 per cent, at 5,627.

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

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.49 per cent.

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9:35 a.m.

Encouraging news on hiring and a strong earnings report from Apple helped send U.S. stocks higher in early trading.

Apple jumped 5 per cent early Wednesday, the biggest gain in the Dow Jones industrial average, after reporting a day earlier that the iPhone snapped out of the first sales slump in its history.

In economic news, payroll provider ADP reported that U.S. companies ramped up hiring in January.

The Dow rose 95 points, or 0.5 per cent, to 19,961.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 9 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 2,288. The Nasdaq composite climbed 42 point, or 0.8 per cent, at 5,657.