Forexpros – U.S. stocks were higher after the open on Tuesday, ahead of testimony by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, amid speculation over the possibility of more easing from the U.S. central bank.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4%, the S&P 500 index advanced 0.4% while the Nasdaq Composite index climbed 0.55%.
Market players looked ahead to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s semi-annual testimony to the U.S. Congress later in the day, amid speculation over the possibility of more easing from the U.S. central bank.
The Fed Chairman is due to testify before the Senate Banking Committee later on Tuesday, and then before the House Financial Services panel Wednesday.
Expectations for another round of quantitative easing from the Fed were boosted on Monday, following data showing a third consecutive monthly decline in U.S. retail sales in June.
Markets showed a limited reaction to data saying that core consumer price inflation in the U.S. rose 0.2% in June, broadly in line with market expectations, while prices including food and energy costs were flat.
In earnings news, Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs saw shares gain 1.5% after reporting earnings of USD962 million in the second quarter. Revenue totaled USD6.63 billion, topping street expectations for revenue of USD6.22 billion.
Shares in toymaker Mattel surged 10% after reporting a 20% increase in second quarter net income. The strong results prompted the company to declare a quarterly dividend of USD0.31 per share for the third quarter.
Beverage giant Coca Cola saw shares rise 2.4% after saying second quarter earnings came in at USD2.79 billion, as revenue rose 2.7% from a year earlier.
On the downside, healthcare conglomerate Johnson & Johnson slumped 1.3% after reporting a 49% drop in second quarter profit to USD1.41 billion from USD2.78 billion a year earlier. Sales fell 0.7% to USD16.48 billion, missing expectations for revenue of USD16.68 billion.
The downbeat earnings prompted the company to lower its full-year earnings outlook.
Shares in Intel and Yahoo were also expected to be active as the companies are slated to report earnings after markets close.
Shares in Yahoo were also in focus after the company named Marissa Mayer, a former executive with Google, as chief executive officer. Shares were up 0.7% on the news.
Earlier Tuesday, official data showed that industrial production rose 0.4% in June, just above expectations for a 0.3% increase, after falling by 0.2% in May.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were mixed to higher. The EURO STOXX 50 rose 0.8%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.7%, Germany’s DAX climbed 0.65%, while Britain’s FTSE 100 dipped 0.15%.
Spain saw short-term borrowing costs fall at an auction of 12 and 18-month government bonds earlier, but the yield on the country’s 10-year bonds was at 6.87%, remaining close to the critical 7% threshold amid sustained concerns over the country’s finances.
Also Tuesday, data showed that German economic sentiment deteriorated for the third consecutive month in July, as concerns over the euro zone’s ongoing debt crisis continued to weigh.
The ZEW Centre for Economic Research said that its index of German economic sentiment fell to minus 19.6 in July from June’s reading of minus 16.9, but was slightly better than expectations for a decline to minus 20.0.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rallied 1.75%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.4%.
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