Stock market today: Live updates

Stocks rose Wednesday following a losing session on Wall Street that pulled the indexes further from record levels.

The S&P 500 gained 0.6%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 216 points, or 0.6%. The Nasdaq Composite also climbed 0.6%.

Those moves follow a negative day for the three major indexes. The Dow slipped nearly 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.4% as technology stocks struggled. With a slide of 0.3%, the S&P 500 saw its third down trading day in a row.

That action comes after the three major indexes all closed at record levels last week. But despite the recent pullback, the three averages are still on pace to end the trading month and quarter, which both conclude with Thursday’s closing bell, in the green.

“Valuations could take us back to, sort of, reality,” said Robert Schein, chief investment officer at Blanke Schein Wealth Management. But, “long term, this rally has legs and there’s a lot of momentum because of liquidity.”

As of Tuesday’s close, the S&P 500 has added 2.1% in the month and 9.1% in the quarter. The Nasdaq has climbed 1.4% in March and 8.7% over the three-month period, while the Dow has added 0.7% and 4.2% in the respective periods.

This would mark the best first-quarter gain for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones since 2019 and 2021, respectively, when the indexes rose 13.1% and 7.4%. All three major averages are on pace to notch their fifth straight winning month and second straight winning quarter.

Traders will monitor commentary from Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller Wednesday evening. There’s no closely followed economic data expected on Wednesday.

Later in the week, investors will watch for data on jobless claims, gross domestic product and consumer sentiment on Thursday. While the market is closed on Good Friday, attention will be on releases tied to personal income, consumer spending and the personal consumption expenditures expected in the morning.