On Wednesday, October 9th, the U.S. markets closed higher, driven by Federal Reserve meeting minutes showing a "substantial majority" supported a half-point rate cut, easing investor concerns. Traders also anticipated key inflation data and the upcoming third-quarter earnings season.

Tech stocks saw mixed movements, with Google parent Alphabet down 1.5% amid antitrust concerns.

Related: Fed Minutes Reveal Heated Debate Over September Interest Rate Move: Traders Trim November Easing Bets

In economic data, U.S. wholesale inventories rose 0.1% month-over-month to $904.8 billion in August, below the preliminary 0.2% estimate and matching the revised 0.2% increase from the previous month.

The S&P 500 closed mostly higher, led by gains in healthcare, information technology, and industrials, while utilities and communication services ended lower.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.03% and closed at 42,512.00. The S&P 500 ended the day higher by 0.71% at 5,792.04, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.60%, finishing the session at 18,291.62.    

Asian Markets Today

• On Thursday, Japan's Nikkei 225 closed the session higher by 0.29% at 39,414.50, led by gains in the Chemical, Petroleum & Plastic, Marine Transport, and Precision Instruments sectors.

• Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.43% and ended the day at 8,223.00, led by gains in the Metals & Mining, Materials and Resources sectors.

• India's Nifty 50 traded higher by 0.08% at 25,000.40 and Nifty 500 up 0.02% at 25,000.40.

• China's Shanghai Composite rose 1.32% to close at 3,301.93, and the Shenzhen CSI 300 gained 1.06%, finishing the day at 3,997.79.

• Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was up 2.98% and closed at 21,251.98.

Eurozone at 05:45 AM ET

• The European STOXX 50 index was down 0.24%.

• Germany's DAX declined 0.19%.

• France's CAC fell 0.23%.

• U.K.'s FTSE 100 index traded lower by 0.08%.

Commodities at 05:45 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 1.50% at $74.35/bbl, and Brent was up 1.40% at $77.66/bbl.

• Oil prices increased, supported by increased demand from Hurricane Milton's impact in Florida and concerns over Middle East supply risks. Tensions between Israel and Iran kept investors cautious despite demand concerns and higher U.S. crude inventories.

• Natural Gas was down 0.90% at $2.636.

• Gold was trading higher by 0.30% at $2,633.90, Silver gained 0.54% to $30.832, and Copper rose 0.09% to $4.4030.

US Futures at 05:45 AM ET

Dow futures were down 0.10%, S&P 500 futures fell 0.14%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures declined 0.17%.

Forex at 05:45 AM ET

• The U.S. dollar index slid 0.02% to 102.90, the USD/JPY was down 0.25% to 148.91, and the USD/AUD fell 0.07% to 1.4874.

• The U.S. dollar held near a seven-week high as traders awaited key U.S. inflation data. The yen slipped as markets remain skeptical about further rate hikes from the Bank of Japan.