NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks opened higher Wednesday after the government hiked its estimate of how the economy performed and investors looked to Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke’s speech.
The Commerce Department said gross domestic product rose at a 1.7% annual rate from April through June, up from its prior estimate of 1.5%. Read more on GDP.
“It is like a car travelling at 17 miles per hour in a 55 mile-per-hour speed zone,” Fred Dickson, chief investment strategist at Davidson Cos., wrote of the economy’s performance.
“The next potential market-moving event occurs Friday” Dickson said of Bernanke’s coming talk at an annual symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyo.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA -0.06% gained 5.66 points to 13,108.65.
Dow component and equipment-maker Caterpillar Inc. CAT -1.65% slipped 0.9% after competitor Joy Global Inc. JOY -5.73% reduced its earnings and revenue forecast.
The S&P 500 index SPX -0.02% rose 1.41 point to 1,410.71, with telecommunications the best performer and utilities the laggard among its 10 sectors.
WellPoint Inc. WLP +7.39% gained 6.5% after the insurer said Angela Braly resigned Tuesday as its chairman and chief executive officer.
The Nasdaq Composite COMP +0.02% rose 6.37 points to 3,083.42.
For every two stocks on the decline, three gained on the New York Stock Exchange, where 57 million shares had traded as of 9:45 a.m. Eastern. Composite volume came to 192 million.
Oil declined after Hurricane Isaac made landfall in Louisiana, and the Group of Seven nations urged oil-producing nations to step up production. Crude futures for October delivery CLV2 -0.64% fell 69 cents, or 0.7%, to $95.64 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Read more on oil futures.
Kate Gibson is a reporter for MarketWatch, based in New York.
