Stocks Opened Higher ahead of Fed Minutes

U.S. stocks opened higher on Wednesday, as investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting minutes for clues on future interest rake hikes this year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 55.59 points, or 0.25%, to 22,054.58. The S&P 500 gained 5.23 points, or 0.21%, to 2,469.84. The Nasdaq Composite added 7.52 points, or 0.12%, to 6,340.53.

Oil prices edged up on Wednesday, lifted by hopes U.S. crude inventories declined for a seventh straight week, although markets were still restrained by excess supply. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were at $47.60 a barrel, up 5 cents, or 0.11 percent. Brent crude futures were at $50.98 per barrel at 1230 GMT, up 18 cents, or 0.30 percent, from their last close.

Target Corp (TGT) on Wednesday reported higher-than-expected quarterly profit and comparable-store sales after four straight quarters of declines. Sales at stores open more than 12 months rose 1.3 percent. Excluding items, Target earned $1.23 per share in the quarter ended July 29. Sales rose 1.6 percent to $16.43 billion.

Tencent Holdings Ltd. is reaping the rewards of marrying social media with mobile gaming. China’s largest corporation posted its fastest revenue growth in seven years and a record profit that surpassed estimates by 35 percent, thanks to its marquee hack-and-slash title Honour of Kings. Tencent reported a 70 percent surge in net income to a record 18.2 billion yuan ($2.7 billion) for the three months ended June, exceeding the 13.5 billion-yuan average of estimates.