Investing.com – Wall Street traded with slight gains on Wednesday on mixed economic reports and as U.S. crude inventory data sent oil surging 2%.
At 15:31GMT, or 11:31AM ET, the Dow 30 gained 24 points, or 0.13%, the S&P 500 rose 3 points, or 0.13%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 8 points or 0.16%.
In a report, payroll processing firm ADP said non-farm private employment rose by a seasonally adjusted 179,000 last month, surpassing expectations for an increase of 170,000.
While not viewed as a reliable guide for the government jobs report due on Friday, August 5, it does give guidance on private-sector hiring.
Service sector activity in the U.S. grew at a slower pace than expected in July, industry data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, the Institute of Supply Management (ISM) said its non-manufacturing purchasing manager's index (PMI) fell to 55.5 last month from 56.5 in June. Analysts had expected the index to drop to 56.0.
Still, the report noted that the majority of the respondents’ comments reflected stability and continued growth for their respective companies and a positive outlook on the economy.
After the data was released, the dollar held onto gains against the other major currencies on Wednesday.
Hand in hand with the stronger dollar, odds on the possibility of a rate hike this year also ticked higher.
The chances for an increase in September edged up to 18% after the release, compared to the prior reading of 12%, according to CME Group’s FedWatch tool.
Odds for a December hike rose to 41.5%, from just 38.5% before the report.
Even so, markets were not expecting an increase until June 2017 with a probability of 53.6%.
Elsewhere, oil prices shot up, with West Texas breaking above $40, after U.S. inventory data that despite showing a surprise build in crude stockpiles, also revealed a huge draw in gasoline inventories.
U.S. crude futures traded up 2.20% to $40.38 by 15:32GMT, or 11:32AM ET, while Brent oil gained 1.94% to $42.61.
In company news, American International Group Inc (NYSE:AIG) soared more than 7% after profit beat estimates.
Time Warner Inc (NYSE:TWX) was up 3% as quarterly profit was supported by an increase in subscribers to its Home Box Office network.
Also of note, despite mixed results, Office Depot Inc (NASDAQ:ODP) jumped almost 6% on its announcement that it would explore strategic alternatives for its operations in Europe.