Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (+0.2), Nasdaq Composite (+0.7%), and DJIA (-0.2%) trade mostly higher shortly after the open. 

Oil prices are modestly higher off of yesterday's double-digit retreat amid escalating tensions in the Strait of Hormuz. Crude oil is currently up $1.79 (+2.1%) to $85.24 per barrel. The energy sector (+0.8%) holds a nice gain as a result, though the sector remains lower week-to-date. Notably, the 32 member countries of the International Energy Agency unanimously agreed today to make 400 million barrels of oil from their emergency reserves available to the market to address disruptions in oil markets stemming from the war in the Middle East.

The top-weighted information technology sector (+1.1%) is another outperformer and is currently the best-performing S&P 500 sector this week by a considerable margin. Oracle (ORCL 168.74, +19.34, +12.94%) is sharply higher after a beat-and-raise earnings report, which has resonated positively across the software landscape after recent pressure. The iShares GS Software ETF is up 1.3%. 

Mega-cap tech names trade mostly higher this morning, helping the consumer discretionary (+1.2%) and communication services (+0.6%) sectors trade higher. Tesla (TSLA 414.57, +15.34, +3.84%) is a standout. 

Meanwhile, the seven other S&P 500 sectors trade lower, though the weakness is relatively modest.

The materials sector (-1.2%) is a laggard amid a pullback in precious metal prices today, while the consumer staples sector (-1.0%) holds a similar loss after an earnings miss from Campbell Soup (CPB 23.10, -1.58, -6.42%).