US stocks closed with big gains on Wednesday, supported by a jump in the Nasdaq index, amid investor optimism ahead of the inflation report in the United States, which may pave the way for the Federal Reserve (the US central bank) to slow the pace of raising interest rates.
Economists polled by Archyde.com had expected the highly anticipated report, due out on Thursday, to show US consumer prices rising 6.5 percent year-on-year in December, compared with a 7.1 percent increase in November.
The indices of the real estate sector and the consumer luxuries sector recorded the best performance during the day.
According to preliminary data, the Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose by 50.06 points, or 1.28 percent, to close at 3,969.50 points, while the Nasdaq Composite Index increased by 189.07 points, or 1.76 percent, to 10,931.70 points. The industrial index rose 263.24 points, or 0.78 percent, to close at 33,967.34 points.
