Stocks Remain Mostly Positive In Mid-Day Trading - U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - Stocks have moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday, extending the upward trend seen over the past several weeks. With the advance, all three of the major averages reached new record intraday highs.

Currently, the major averages remain in positive territory. The Dow is up 87.56 points or 0.4 percent at 19,883.99, the Nasdaq is up 64.47 points or 1.2 percent at 5,477.01 and the S&P 500 is up 12.71 points or 0.6 percent at 2,269.67.

The markets continue to benefit from recent upward momentum amid optimism following President-elect Donald Trump's surprise victory last month.

Traders are also looking ahead to the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision, which is scheduled to be announced on Wednesday.

The Fed is widely expected to increase interest rates by 25 basis points, reflecting the first rate hike in a year.

The accompanying statement is likely to be in focus, as traders gauge the outlook for further monetary policy normalization by the central bank.

Later this week, reports on retail sales, industrial production, and inflation may also attract attention as traders look for clues about the central bank's next move.

Computer hardware, energy and software stocks are seeing significant strength on the day, while steel and railroad stocks have come under pressure.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.5 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index inched up by 0.1 percent.

The major European markets also moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index jumped by 1.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index advanced by 0.9 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively.

In the bond market, treasuries have pulled back near the unchanged line after seeing initial strength. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by less than a basis point at 2.488 percent.