By Kate Gibson, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks ended higher on Wednesday, as a successful sovereign debt auction in Portugal helped ease concerns about Europe, but with gains capped after the Federal Reserve confirmed the U.S. economy is slowing.
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In its survey by 12 regional banks, the Fed reported conditions mixed or decelerating in five regions and growing at a moderate pace in five. Read more about Fed's Beige Book.
In Ohio, President Barack Obama argued for giving tax cuts to Americans making $250,000 or less, and against continuing tax cuts for wealthier Americans, saying the country can't afford the $700 billion price tag.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average /quotes/comstock/10w!i:dji/delayed (DJIA 10,387, +46.32, +0.45%) rose 46.32 points, or 0.5%, to end at 10,387.01, about 40 points shy of returning to positive for 2010.
Twenty-four of its 30 components rose, with aluminum giant Alcoa Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!aa/quotes/nls/aa (AA 11.07, +0.21, +1.93%) paving the gains, up 2%.
Hewlett-Packard Co. /quotes/comstock/13*!hpq/quotes/nls/hpq (HPQ 38.81, -1.11, -2.78%) fell the most among the blue chips, losing 2.8% after UBS AG downgraded the computer manufacturer from buy to neutral. UBS also cut Intel Corp. /quotes/comstock/15*!intc/quotes/nls/intc (INTC 17.90, -0.22, -1.21%) , with the chip manufacturer off 1.2%.
H-P has been part of an ongoing corporate drama involving former chief executive Mark Hurd, going to court on Tuesday in an effort to block Hurd from joining Oracle Corp. /quotes/comstock/15*!orcl/quotes/nls/orcl (ORCL 24.14, -0.13, -0.52%) its rival in the server computer market.
Hurd mentality
A regulatory filing Wednesday has Oracle offering the ousted H-P executive a salary of $950,000 and a bonus of as much as $10 million for fiscal 2011, plus stock options, to join it as a co-president.
The S&P 500 Index /quotes/comstock/21z!i1:in\x (SPX 1,099, +7.03, +0.64%) gained 7.03 points, or 0.6%, to 1,098.87, with financial and industrial companies, among the index's 10 industry groups, leading the rise.
A rally for retail
Gainers include Staples and Costco, as both get upgraded by Goldman Sachs. Phillips-Van Heusen also jumps after its adjusted quarterly profit topped estimates, though Talbots disappoints. MarketWatch's Andria Cheng reports.
The Nasdaq Composite Index /quotes/comstock/10y!i:comp (COMP 2,229, +19.98, +0.90%) added 19.98 points, or 0.9%, to 2,228.87.
For every stock on the decline, more than two rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where nearly 880 million shares traded.
After finishing at a record high Tuesday, gold futures fell $1.80 to end at $1,257.5 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while crude-oil futures tallied modest gains to finish at $74.67 a barrel.
Shares of BP /quotes/comstock/13*!bp/quotes/nls/bp (BP 38.37, +1.18, +3.17%) gained 3.2% after the British-based energy giant released a report largely blaming contractors Transocean Ltd. /quotes/comstock/13*!rig/quotes/nls/rig (RIG 53.74, +0.69, +1.30%) and Halliburton Co. /quotes/comstock/13*!hal/quotes/nls/hal (HAL 30.21, +0.37, +1.24%) for the U.S.'s worst oil spill. See full story on BP's blame assignment.
On Tuesday, Wall Street snapped a four-session run higher amid worries about European banks. But the worries dissipated after Portugal's sale of bonds drew increased demand on Wednesday.
Kate Gibson is a reporter for MarketWatch, based in New York.
More Market Snapshot
| Sept. 7, 2010 | U.S. stocks end four-day win streak | |
| Sept. 4, 2010 | Short week to have some economic impact | |
| Sept. 3, 2010 | Stocks close higher on jobs optimism | |
| Sept. 2, 2010 | Stocks log gains ahead of Friday jobs report | |
| Sept. 1, 2010 | U.S. stocks rally on hopes for economic growth |
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