US stock market today: The benchmark US stock market indices like the Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite open higher on Wednesday, 18 February 2026, amid easing investor concerns over artificial intelligence (AI). The investors will also keep their focus on the US Fed’s minutes release, which is scheduled for later today.
At 9:30 a.m. (EDT) opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.08% to 49,571.92 points, the S&P 500 rose by 0.18% to open at 6,855.48 points. While the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.23% to 22,629.852 points at the Wall Street open on Wednesday.
The US Federal Reserve is set to release its Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes of the meeting at 2 p.m. (EDT) or 12:30 a.m. (IST) later today, which will offer investors key insights into the central bank’s January 2026 policy meeting.
Dow Jones today
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was trading 0.53% higher at 49,796.62 points as of 10:01 a.m. (EDT) as of Wednesday’s trading session, compared to 49,533.19 points at the previous US stock market close, according to MarketWatch data.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Nvidia Corp., Walt Disney Co., Amazon, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Chevron Corp., American Express Co., Caterpillar Inc., Salesforce Inc., Nike Inc., Microsoft Corp., Cisco Systems Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Apple Inc., Amgen Inc., and Visa Inc., were among other US stocks among the top gainers as of the early trading session.
While others like 3M Co., Boeing Co., Travelers Cos. Inc., Procter & Gamble Co., Verizon Communications Inc., Honeywell International Inc., UnitedHealth Group Inc., McDonald’s Corp., Walmart Inc., and Merck & Co., Inc., were among the top laggards on Dow Jones today.
S&P 500 today
The S&P 500 index was trading 0.72% higher at 6,892.35 points as of 10:09 a.m. (EDT), compared to 6,843.22 points at the previous market session, MarketWatch data showed.
Stocks like Garmin Ltd, Global Payments Inc., Insulet Corp., Cadence Design Systems Inc., DoorDash Inc., Moderna Inc., Moody’s Corp., Block Inc., AppLovin Corp., and MGM Resorts International Inc. were among the top gainers on Wednesday.
While others like Palo Alto Networks Inc., Republic Services Inc., Charles River Laboratories International Inc., Allstate Corp., Genuine Parts Co., Progressive Corp., Arch Capital Group Ltd, Datadog Inc., Conagra Brands Inc., and Expand Energy Corp. were among the laggards.
Nasdaq Composite today
Tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was trading 1.20% higher at 22,850.41 points as of 10:17 a.m. (EDT) on Wednesday, compared to 22,578.38 points at the previous market close, according to MarketWatch data.
US stocks like Rackspace Technology Inc., Sensei Biotherapeutics Inc., Moolec Science S.A., Jiade Ltd, Auddia Inc., RenX Enterprise Corp., Sabre Corp., Beneficient, VivoPower International Plc, and JFB Construction Holdings were among the top gainers on Nasdaq.
While others like Lion Group Holdings Ltd., OLB Group Inc., Polaryx Therapeutics Inc., Strata Skin Sciences Inc., Innovation Beverage Group Ltd, Axcelis Technologies Inc., Avalon GloboCare Corp., Ensysce Biosciences Inc., Veeco Instruments Inc., and Sagtec Global Ltd were among the top losers on Wednesday.
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Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. We advise investors to consult with certified experts before making any investment decisions, as market conditions can change rapidly and circumstances may vary.