Most US stocks rise after strong start to earnings season

Most U.S. stocks rose Wednesday following an encouraging start to whats expected to be a thunderous earnings reporting season, but major indexes still ended mixed as drops in several tech heavyweights including Apple and Facebook weighed them down.

Most U.S. stocks rose Wednesday following an encouraging start to what's expected to be a thunderous earnings reporting season, but major indexes still ended mixed as drops in several tech heavyweights including Apple and Facebook weighed them down. The S&P 500 fell 0.4 per cent, easing below the record high it set a day earlier.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 1 per cent but the Russell 2000, which tracks smaller companies, climbed 0.8 per cent. Shares of Coinbase Global surged in their market debut as more mainstream investors embrace cryptocurrencies. Crude oil prices rose sharply on expectations that a resurgent economy will consume more energy.