US stocks close higher as Obama seeks diplomatic route

US stocks ended the day on a high note despite another disappointing day from Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) . The maker of the iPhone and iPad has received negative feedback over the pricing of its new iPhone 5C. On the geopolitical front, president Barack Obama avoided what likely would have been a landslide vote against him by compelling Congress to postpone its vote on Syria. The president is now seeking diplomatic solutions to the ongoing dangers posed in Syria, ceding to Russia’s plan to confiscate the country’s chemical weapons stockpile. The markets were energized leading up to the president’s Tuesday night address on positive growth data from China.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average recorded its third consecutive three-digit gain, advancing 135.54 points to 15,326.60. Among the Dow’s biggest winners were IBM Corp, Walt Disney Company and Alcoa Inc, each advancing at least 1.65 percent. Wednesday was another big day for US oil companies. Exxon Mobil Corp led the charge with a gain of 1.16 percent to $88.84 a share. Chevron Corp added three quarters of a percent to $123.92.

Technology stocks had a mixed day, sending the NASDAQ Composite to 3,725.01, a loss of more than 0.1 percent. Microsoft gained more than 1 percent as Nokia shares advanced another 5.95 percent. Earlier this month the maker of Windows acquired Nokia for $7.2 billion. On the flipside, shares of Apple declined another 5.42 percent to $467.83 as investors continue to weigh the next generation iPhones. The iPhone 5C, which is Apple’s cheaper alternative to the high-end iPhone 5S, has disappointed investors, who feel its price of $99 on a two-year contract isn’t low enough.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 advanced for its seventh consecutive day, extending its best winning streak since mid-July. The S&P gained more than 0.3 percent to close the day at 1,689.13, around 20 points shy of its August 2^nd record high. In total, 5.8 billion shares were exchanged on the US markets, slightly below the three-month average.