U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday, rebounding after two days of losses as energy shares rose alongside another jump in crude prices. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 48.38 points, or 0.33%, to 14,824.51. The S&P 500 rose 4.48 points to 1,634.96. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 14.83 points, or 0.41%, to 3,593.35.
Fewer Americans signed contracts in July to buy previously owned homes, a sign that rising mortgage rates are starting to slow momentum in the housing market. The index of pending home sales dropped 1.3 percent, after a 0.4 percent decrease in June, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed.
Syria continued to feed supply concerns in the Middle East on Wednesday, lifting futures prices for oil to a close above $110 a barrel even after the latest U.S. data showed an unexpected climb in the past week’s crude supplies. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude oil for October delivery (NMN:CLV3) added $1.09, or 1%, to settle at $110.10 a barrel.
Williams-Sonoma (WSM) said Wednesday that its fiscal second-quarter profit jumped nearly 13 percent as sales gained. It earned $48.9 million, or 49 cents per share, for the quarter that ended Aug. 4. That is up from $43.4 million, or 43 cents per share, for its second quarter last year. Its total revenue increased 12 percent to $982 million from $874 million.
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