US equity indexes rose in choppy midday trading Wednesday amid speculation President Donald Trump could reach a tariff deal with Canada and Mexico and as investors weighed divergent economic data.

The Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.6% to 18,392.2, with the S&P 500 up 0.4% to 5,799.7 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.4% higher at 42,682.3. The trio traded mixed-to-negative earlier in the session. Energy and utilities were the sole decliners intraday, while the materials sector led the gainers intraday.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick reportedly said Tuesday that President Donald Trump will "probably" unveil agreements with Canada and Mexico as early as Wednesday on import duties that came into effect on Tuesday. All three equity indexes have fallen so far this week as investors assessed the impact of import duties on the US economy.

The CBOE's volatility index VIX, known also as the fear gauge, fell 2.6% to 22.91 after trading almost 3% higher pre-bell.

In economic news, ADP's monthly measure of private payrolls showed an increase of 77,000 jobs in February, below the 140,000 jump expected in a Bloomberg-compiled survey. January was revised upward to 186,000.

Meanwhile, the Institute for Supply Management's US services index rose to 53.5 in February from 52.8 in January, compared with expectations of 52.5 in a poll Bloomberg compiled. The S&P Global US services index was revised upwards to 51 from the 49.7 flash reading for February, versus expectations for no revision in a separate survey compiled by the news agency.

In economic news, new orders for US factory goods rose 1.7% in January, as expected in a Bloomberg-compiled survey, compared with a 0.6% decrease in December. Excluding a 9.9% jump in transportation orders, new orders would have been up 0.2% versus a 0.3% gain in the previous month.

Most US Treasury yields rose intraday, with the 10-year up 6.1 basis points to 4.27% and the 2-year 1.7 basis points higher at 3.97%.

In company news, CrowdStrike (CRWD) issued fiscal Q1 and full-year earnings guidance late Tuesday that trailed market estimates. Its shares slumped 7.4% intraday, the worst performer on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.

Celanese (CE) said Wednesday its US unit launched offers to buy for cash up to 500 million euros ($535.2 million) of its 4.777% senior notes due 2026 and $250 million of its 6.415% senior notes due 2027. Shares jumped 8.9%, among the top gainers on the S&P 500.

The US Treasury Department ordered Chevron (CVX) to wind down operations in Venezuela within a month. Shares of the oil and gas exploration group dropped 2.1% intraday, the biggest laggard on the Dow.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures sank 3.2% to $66.04 a barrel.

US commercial crude oil stocks, excluding inventories in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, rose by 3.6 million barrels in the week ended Feb. 28, following a 2.3 million barrel drop in the previous week and an 800,000-barrel increase anticipated in a poll compiled by Bloomberg.

Gold futures rose 0.2% to $2,926.33, and their silver counterparts jumped 2.3% to $33.12.