Wall Street's Gains Tempered by Ukraine Worries

Stocks are closed higher on Wall Street Tuesday, boosted by more signs the nation’s high inflation may be falling off faster than expected. But a flare-up of worries about the war in Ukraine kept Wall Street shaky and undercut much of its big morning gains, the AP reports. The S&P 500 rose 34.48 points, or 0.9%, to 3,991.73. Earlier in the day, it saw a 1.8% gain disappear and swung briefly to a loss of 0.1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 56.22 points, or 0.2%, to 33,592.92. The Nasdaq rose 162.19 points, or 1.4%, to 11,358.41.

When Wall Street opened for trading, the overall mood was ebullience as stocks bounced following the latest economic report to suggest inflation continues to cool from its summertime peak. The report showed inflation at the wholesale level eased back to 8% in October from 8.4% a month earlier, better than the 8.3% economists were expecting. The S&P 500 climbed to its highest level in two months, while Treasury yields eased on hopes a slowdown in inflation could mean the Federal Reserve's bitter, economy-crunching medicine for it could taper as well. But the gains for stocks disappeared following reports that Russian missiles crossed into Poland, which is a member of NATO. Prices for crude oil jumped as stock prices fell, an indication traders were building bets for aftershocks from an escalation in the war in Ukraine.

Markets then recovered and retraced some of their movements as the afternoon progressed. "Inflation is still top of mind and market moving," said Nate Thooft, senior portfolio manager at Manulife Investment Management. "Anything that potentially swings the inflation story, the market is keen to react." Through Tuesday's swings, technology stocks continued to lead the way on Wall Street. Chipmaker Nvidia rose 2.3%, and Apple rose 1.2%. Walmart surged 6.6% after reporting strong financial results, raising its profit forecast and announcing an opioid settlement. Target reports its results on Wednesday, and Macy's reports its results on Thursday. Wall Street will get a broader update on retail sales Wednesday when the government releases its report for October.

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