U.S. stocks traded higher midway through trading, with the Nasdaq Composite gaining around 250 points on Wednesday.

The Dow traded up 0.95% to 39,367.42 while the NASDAQ rose 1.52% to 16,616.10. The S&P 500 also rose, gaining, 1.33% to 5,309.90.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Energy shares climbed by 2% on Wednesday.

In trading on Wednesday, health care shares rose by just 0.1%.

Top Headline

The EIA said crude oil inventories in the U.S. declined by 3.728 million barrels in the week ended Aug. 2, compared to market estimates of a 0.4 million barrel decline.

Equities Trading UP

Upstart Holdings, Inc. ( UPST ) shares shot up 50% to $35.77 after the company reported better-than-expected second-quarter financial results and issued third-quarter revenue guidance above estimates on Tuesday.

Shares of G1 Therapeutics, Inc. ( GTHX ) got a boost, surging 66% to $7.07 after the company announced it will be acquired by Pharmacosmos Group in an all-cash transaction valued at $405 million.

PetIQ, Inc. ( PETQ ) shares were also up, gaining 48% to $30.44 after the company reported better-than-expected second-quarter adjusted earnings results.

Equities Trading DOWN

Stem, Inc. ( STEM ) shares dropped 41% to $0.5844 after the company reported mixed second-quarter financial results.

Shares of Expion360 Inc. ( XPON ) were down 68% to $0.0827 after the company reported the pricing of $10 million underwritten public offering.

Talis Biomedical Corporation ( TLIS ) was down, falling 49% to $4.58. The company announced board restructuring, appointed new directors and updated investors on potential bankruptcy proceedings.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded up 3.5% to $75.76 while gold traded up 0.3% at $2,437.90.

Silver traded down 0.4% to $27.095 on Wednesday, while copper fell 1.5% to $3.9655.

Euro zone

European shares were higher today. The eurozone's STOXX 600 rose 1.55%, Germany's DAX rose 1.46% and France's CAC 40 climbed 1.87%. Spain's IBEX 35 Index gained 2.13%, while London's FTSE 100 rose 1.71%.

Asia Pacific Markets

Asian markets closed higher on Wednesday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 jumping 1.19%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gaining 1.38%, China's Shanghai Composite Index rising 0.09% and S&P BSE Sensex jumping 1.11%.

Economics

The Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index rose 2.8% month-over-month for July.

Mortgage applications rose by 6.9% from the prior week in the period ending August 2.

The EIA said crude oil inventories in the U.S. declined by 3.728 million barrels in the week ended Aug. 2, compared to market estimates of a 0.4 million barrel decline.

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