(Updates with index/price moves, macroeconomic data, and company/geopolitical news from the first paragraph.)
US equity indexes traded mixed, with communication services topping the sector charts while technology led peer groups lower after midday Wednesday.
The Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.2% to 26,153.4, after ending Q2 with gains previously seen six years ago. The S&P 500 rose 0.2% to 7,516.6, extending gains after closing Q2 with gains that were the highest since Q2 2020. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6% to 52,644.2, after capping the strongest first half in five years.
In company news, Meta Platforms (META) is building a cloud infrastructure business to sell access to AI computing power and models, setting up a new area of competition with Amazon (AMZN) Web Services, Microsoft (MSFT) Azure, and Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google Cloud, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Shares of Meta surged 10%, the top gainer on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.
On Wednesday, the US and Iran held indirect technical talks in Doha as they seek to agree on the flow of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and secure a lasting ceasefire, a source with direct knowledge of the talks and an Iranian official told Reuters.
The front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent declined 2.2% to $71.35 per barrel, and the US West Texas Intermediate retreated 1.8% to $68.26 per barrel.
In economic news, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said companies planned to cut 45,849 jobs in June, down from 97,006 in May and 47,999 a year ago. The largest layoff counts in June were in the technology and services sectors.
Most US Treasury yields rose, with the 10-year jumping 3.9 basis points to 4.46%. The two-year rate climbed 1.7 basis points to 4.16%.