U.S. stocks ended higher on Wednesday, as all three major indexes rose over 0.5 percent for the day. In world economic news, Asian markets ended with mixed results. The Nikkei in Japan rose by nearly 1 percent, while markets in Indian and China fell. In U.S. economic news, the Commerce Department said a drop in U.S. exports and lower income from overseas investments drove the U.S. current account deficit to its highest level in 18 months. The deficit jumped to $111.2 billion in the January-March quarter, up from $87.3 billion in the October-December quarter. The dollar fell versus the Yen, the Euro, and the Pound. Light sweet crude oil for July delivery rose to $106.11 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold futures rose to $1,274.30 an ounce. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 98.13, or 0.6 percent, to 16,906.62. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 14.99, or 0.8 percent, to 1,956.98. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index rose 25.61, or 0.6 percent, to 4,362.84.
