Wall Street buoyed by energy, ends day with modest gains

• Technology and energy outperform other major sectors on Tuesday.
• Market sentiment improves as trade worries fade.

Major equity indexes in the United States started the day slightly higher on Tuesday and extended their  gains before retracing some of their upsides amid profit-taking in the last couple of hours of the session.

Technology shares, which got hurt the most on Monday on concerns over potential restrictions on foreign investment in U.S. technology firms, made a solid comeback on Tuesday. The S&P 500 Information Technology Index (SPLRCT) ended the day 0.5% higher.

On the other hand, news of the United States planning to force their allies to stop importing oil from Iran triggered a strong rally in crude oil prices. The barrel of West Texas Intermediate jumped above the $70 mark for the first time in more than a month, and the S&P 500 Energy Index (SPNY) added 1.4% to become the best performing sector.  

“There’s a relief rally in technology, and there’s a fundamentals rally in energy,” Robert Phipps, a director at Per Stirling Capital Management in Austin, Texas, told Reuters.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed the day 28.45 points, 0.12%, higher at 24,281.25 after adding as many as 85.16 points. The S&P 500 gained 5.96 points, or 0.12%, to 2,723.03 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 29.86 points, or 0.4%, to 7,561.86.