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Biotechnology stocks rallied on Wednesday, with one of the biggest exchange-traded funds dedicated to the sector on track for its third straight daily advance. The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF gained 1.3%, bringing its week-to-date rise to 3.6%. Among the biggest gainers in the sector, Gilead Sciences Inc. popped 5.6%, bringing its gain over the past three months to 23.7%. The stock is on track for its largest percentage gain since November, as well as its highest close since September 2016. Separately, Incyte Corp. added 4.5% while BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. advanced 4.8%. Biogen Inc. gained 2.4% while Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. was up 2%. On the downside within the pharmaceutical sector, U.S.-listed shares of Novartis AG were down 1%. The company’s CAR-T cell therapy was approved by the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday, making it the first gene therapy to be available in the U.S.

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Novartis AG’s CAR-T cell therapy was approved by the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday, making it the first gene therapy to be available in the U.S. Novartis’ Kymriah was approved for young people up to age 25 with a form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. CAR-T, or chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, uses a patient’s immune T-cells and re-engineers them to better fight cancer. As such, each dose of Kymriah is customized to the individual patient’s T-cells through genetic modification. Novartis said on Wednesday that it will work with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services so medicine prices can be “based on the clinical outcomes achieved, which would eliminate inefficiencies from the health care system.” For Kymriah, Novartis is also working with CMS “to allow for payment only when pediatric and young adult ALL patients respond to Kymriah by the end of the first month.” Novartis did not give any specifics as to what the price range might be. Even before Novartis’ Kymriah was approved, there was concern about pricing of the new therapy, given that new therapies are typically priced based on level of innovation and cancer is a particularly expensive area. On Wednesday, the FDA also expanded approval of Roche’s Genentech’s rheumatoid arthritis drug Actemra to treat CAR-T cell-induced cytokine release syndrome, which consists of high fever and flu-like symptoms and can be life-threatening; nearly 70% of patients had CRS completely resolved in two weeks using one or two doses of Actemra, the FDA said. Kite Pharma, which is also working in the CAR-T space, has also been racing to gain FDA approval; the biotech’s $11 billion acquisition by Gilead Sciences Inc. was reported earlier this week. Gilead shares surged 5.5% in extremely heavy midday trade. Novartis shares declined 1% in heavy midday trade. Novartis shares have risen 2.8% over the last three months, compared with a 1.6% rise in the S&P 500 .

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average was trading slightly higher early Wednesday, with blue chips scoring a boost from Goldman Sachs. Shares of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. , the world’s most prominent investment bank, were up about $2.83, or 1.3%, contributing about 20 points to the price-weighted gauge. Each $1 move in the benchmark translates to a 6.84-point swing. Broadly speaking, financials, including Goldman, were benefiting from better-than-expected economic reports, including private-sector job growth at 237,000 in August, well above estimates for 185,000 and an update on U.S. economic growth showing U.S. GDP grew at a 3% pace in the second quarter. Those upbeat reports may support another rate hike for the Federal Reserve before the end of the year, market participants are betting. Higher rates tends to be a boon to a bank’s lending models. Shares of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. also were tilting higher, up 0.5%, while a broad gauge of the financial sector, the Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF were the best performer among the S&P 500’s 11 sectors early Wednesday.

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As the rainfall from now tropical storm Harvey continues to pour down on southeastern Texas and southwestern Louisiana, a new tropical storm is forming over the far eastern Atlantic, the National Hurricane Center said Wednesday. The storm, named Irma, poses no immediate threat to land, the center said in its latest advisory. However, “some strengthening is
forecast during the next 48 hours and Irma could become a hurricane
on Friday,” said the advisory. For now, Irma has maximum sustained winds of 50 miles an hour.

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Shares of Analog Devices Inc. surged more than 4% Wednesday to lead S&P 500 gainers, after the maker of analog, mixed-signal, and digital signal processing integrated circuits used in electronic equipment posted better-than-expected earnings for its fiscal third quarter and offered upbeat guidance. The company said it had net income of $68.9 million, or 18 cents a share, in the quarter, down from $93.6 million, or 74 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted per-share earnings came to $1.26, well ahead of the FactSet consensus of $1.14. Revenue rose to $1.43 billion from $869.6 million, also ahead of the FactSet consensus of $1.41 billion. “Looking ahead to the October quarter, we continue to see signs of positive business conditions and are planning for revenue in the fourth quarter to be in the range of $1.45 billion to $1.55 billion, with strong profitability,” Chief Executive Vincent Roche said in a statement. The FactSet consensus is for fourth-quarter revenue of $1.45 billion. The company is expecting adj. EPS of $1.29 to $1.43 for the fourth quarter, compared with a FactSet consensus of $1.24. Shares have gained 14% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 9%.

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Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration Wednesday showed that domestic crude supplies dropped by 5.4 million barrels for the week ended Aug. 25, following declines in each of the last eight weeks. That’s more than the forecast for a decline of 1.5 million barrels by analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts. The American Petroleum Institute had reported late Tuesday a decline of 5.8 million barrels, according to sources. Gasoline stockpiles were unchanged for the week, while distillate stockpiles edged up by 700,000 barrels, according to the EIA. The data on the products defied survey forecasts for a decline of 1.9 million barrels for gasoline and a fall of 600,000 barrels for distillates. October crude was down 32 cents, or 0.7%, at $46.12 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices traded at $46.16 before the supply data. September gasoline traded at $1.90 a gallon, up 11.7 cents, or 6.5%, ahead of the contract’s expiration Thursday.

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U.S. stock-index benchmarks kicked off trade near break levels on Wednesday after a pair of upbeat economic reports, with a key employment report due Friday and the Labor Day holiday set to begin. The Dow Jones Industrial Average opened up 9 points, or less than 0.1%, at 21,870, the S&P 500 index traded flat at 2,446, and the Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.1% at 6,309. On the data front, the U.S. economy expanded at a 3% pace in the second quarter, a faster pace than had originally been reported, and the fastest rate in more than two years. Separately, ADP said private-sector employers added 237,000 jobs in August, well above the 185,000 that had been expected. In corporate news, Vera Bradley Inc. surged after it reported a first-quarter loss that was wider than expected. Sales also came in below forecasts, while shares of H&R Block Inc. look set for a down day after falling late Tuesday as the tax preparer posted. Overall trading was slightly more subdued as geopolitical tensions around North Korea’s launch of a ballistic missile eased and investors watched Hurricane Harvey, now a tropical storm, continue to wreak havoc in Texas and Louisiana. Looking ahead, the market awaits a speech from President Donald Trump on tax reform at 2:30 p.m. Eastern.

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Medicines Co. shares surged 2.5% in premarket trade Wednesday on news that the Food and Drug Administration has approved its injection for complicated urinary tract infections, including the kidney infection pyelonephritis. The injection, Vabomere, contains both an antibacterial and an ingredient that inhibits certain resistance mechanisms used by bacteria, the company said. Medicines Co. expects the injection will be available in the fourth quarter. Complicated urinary tract infections are bacterial infections associated with factors such as pregnancy, prolonged catheterization or use of other drainage devices. Developing new drugs for complicated UTIs has long been a priority; the FDA issued recommendations for drug development in the area in 2015. Medicines Co. shares have surged 2.6% to $38.74 over the last three months, compared with a 1.4% rise in the S&P 500 .

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