US stocks ended higher on Wednesday as investors welcomed another encouraging inflation reading, driving gains in technology shares while stronger corporate updates helped offset concerns over rising tensions in the Middle East.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2%, the S&P 500 gained 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite outperformed with a 0.6% rise, extending the previous session’s advance as investors responded positively to easing price pressures and strength among major technology companies.
Alphabet climbed almost 3%, while Apple reached a record high after reports that Chinese regulators had approved the launch of the company’s generative artificial intelligence features in the country, adding further momentum to the technology sector.
Dutch semiconductor equipment manufacturer ASML also lifted sentiment after raising its annual sales forecast beyond Wall Street expectations, citing continued demand linked to artificial intelligence and unveiling plans to increase chipmaking equipment production capacity by 30%.
Despite the upbeat outlook, semiconductor shares were mixed, with memory chip producers Micron Technology and SK Hynix both falling more than 7%.
Fresh economic data reinforced expectations that inflation is continuing to ease after the Producer Price Index showed wholesale prices rose more slowly than forecast during June, following Consumer Price Index figures that recorded the largest monthly decline in inflation since April 2020.
The figures helped outweigh concerns over higher oil prices after President Donald Trump said military action against Iran would intensify until the country backed down.
Elsewhere, newly listed SpaceX remained under pressure as its shares slipped to an all-time low of $132.75 before finishing at $135.27, leaving the stock below its $135 initial public offering price and more than 30% beneath the record high reached only days after its market debut.
PayPal was among the session’s standout performers, surging 16% following reports that payments company Stripe and private equity group Advent International had jointly offered $60.50 per share in a proposed takeover valuing the business at more than $53 billion.
Across the Atlantic, London’s FTSE 100 edged 0.1% lower as heavyweight mining stocks retreated after weaker Chinese economic figures raised concerns over demand for industrial commodities, while the FTSE 250 added 0.2% on strength in housebuilders.
China’s economy expanded by 4.3% year-on-year in the second quarter, slowing from 5.0% in the opening three months of the year, prompting selling across the mining sector. Fresnillo fell 3.0%, Anglo American lost 3.4%, Antofagasta declined 2.6% and Endeavour Mining dropped 2.5%.
Barratt Redrow was among the FTSE 100’s strongest performers, rising 4.3% after announcing a £386 million share buyback alongside a solid finish to its 2026 financial year, with home completions reaching the upper end of guidance and the company signalling that future capital returns would continue to favour share repurchases.
Investment manager ICG climbed 5.5% after reporting net additions to fee-earning assets of $2.4 billion, comfortably exceeding analysts’ expectations, while Vistry rose 6.6% on the FTSE 250 after chief executive Adam Daniels purchased 38,372 shares following recent weakness in the housebuilder’s share price.
Retailer B&M European Value Retail was one of London’s weakest performers, falling 5.4% after UK like-for-like sales growth failed to meet market expectations.
