NEW YORK, Aug. 24 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks edged higher on Tuesday morning, amid strength in the energy sector.
Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 71.76 points, or 0.20 percent, to 35,407.47. The S&P 500 added 7.99 points, or 0.13 percent, to 4,487.52. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 48.66 points, or 0.33 percent, to 14,991.32.
Seven of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors advanced in morning trading, with energy up 2 percent following a nearly 3.8-percent jump in the prior session, leading the gainers. Utilities slipped 1 percent, the worst-performing group.
Investors are awaiting a key event of the U.S. Federal Reserve as its annual Jackson Hole economic policy symposium will be held later this week.
The conference will be closely watched by market participants as Fed Chairman Jerome Powell could use the occasion to signal that the Fed is on track to tapering its asset purchase program later this year.
The market also cheered the news that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday granted full approval to the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for people age 16 and older.
"The main underlying themes that continue to support the market are strong earnings, a robust outlook, an economy that continues to rebound, and a growing jobs market," Kevin Matras, executive vice president at Zacks Investment Research, said Tuesday in a note, adding "the increase in virus cases remains a concern."
The average daily increase of cases in the United States was over 124,000 in the seven-day period ending Sunday, compared with a seven-day average of around 49,000 daily cases a month ago, according to the latest data compiled by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Enditem
