01:57 PM EDT, 07/16/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes were higher intraday as President Donald Trump denied a report that he was planning to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell soon.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.3% at 44,158.8 after midday Wednesday, while the S&P 500 rose 0.2% to 6,254.9. The Nasdaq Composite, which closed at a record high Tuesday, was up 0.1% intraday at 20,707.6. Among sectors, health care paced the gainers, while energy and consumer discretionary saw the biggest drops.

Trump "likely will soon" remove Powell as Fed chair, CNBC reported, citing a senior White House official. However, Trump later said it is "highly unlikely" he will fire Powell in the near future.

"No, we're not planning on doing it," Trump reportedly said, adding that he doesn't "rule out anything."

US Treasury yields were lower intraday, with the two-year rate decreasing 7.8 basis points to 3.88% and the 10-year rate losing three basis points to 4.46%.

In economic news, US producer prices remained unchanged last month amid an increase in wholesale costs of goods and a decline in the services component, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported, a day after data showed an uptick in consumer inflation.

"Softening demand for travel weighed heavily on the producer price index in June, keeping the headline and core measures unchanged," Oxford Economics said. "Tariff-exposed goods such as household appliances posted strong gains, but apparel and toys were mostly unchanged."

On Tuesday, Trump repeated his call on the Fed to lower interest rates after the consumer inflation report was released. Trump said inflation is "very low" and the Fed should cut rates by 3 (percentage) points.

Mortgage applications in the US plunged last week as home loan rates rose amid renewed worries over tariffs, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was down 0.1% at $66.49 a barrel intraday.

In company news, Johnson & Johnson ( JNJ ) raised its full-year outlook as the healthcare products conglomerate recorded better-than-expected second-quarter results. The company's shares were up 6%, the top gainer on the Dow and the S&P 500.

Omnicom ( OMC ) was among the best performers on the S&P 500, up 4.2%. The company delivered a second-quarter beat late Tuesday.

Morgan Stanley ( MS ) and Goldman Sachs ( GS ) posted stronger-than-expected second-quarter results Wednesday, while Bank of America's ( BAC ) results were mixed. Morgan Stanley ( MS ) shares fell 2.4%, while Goldman rose 0.1%. Bank of America ( BAC ) shares were down 1%.

Ford Motor ( F ) said it will spend about $570 million to remedy a fuel leak issue in certain vehicles that are being recalled in the US. The automaker's shares were down 3.1%, among the steepest declines on the S&P 500.

Gold was up 0.6% at $3,357.2 per troy ounce, while silver lost 0.1% to $38.06 per ounce.