Stocks Opened Higher on Hope in Ukraine

U.S. stocks opened higher on Wednesday amid optimism over Ukraine ‘cease-fire regime’. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately gained 72.08 points, or 0.42%, to 17,139.64. The S&P 500 added 5.06 points, or 0.25%, to 2,007.34. The Nasdaq Composite rose 4.72 points, or 0.10%, to 4,602.91.

Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed Wednesday that he and his Ukrainian counterpart had agreed to the outlines of a cease-fire plan between Kiev’s forces and pro-Russian rebels fighting in eastern Ukraine, Russian news agencies reported.

A record number of U.S. consumers are taking out loans to buy cars, especially those purchasing used vehicles, according to data released
on Wednesday. In the second quarter, 85 percent of new car purchases and 53.8 percent of used car purchases were financed, according to data from Experian Plc, an information provider.

Home Depot, which is working with banks and law enforcement to investigate a potential data breach, said customers won’t beresponsible for any possible fraudulent charges on their credit or debit cards.

CVS Caremark Corp., a Woonsocket, R.I.-based company perhaps best known for its chain of 7,700 drug stores, said Wednesday that it is
changing its name to CVS Health to “reflect its broader health care commitment.

General Motors said August sales fell 1.2% on big declines at its Buick and Cadillac brands. Truck brand GMC was strong, powered by
redesigned fullsize SUVs.