US equities markets ended the day in positive territory on Wednesday on news that the US trade deficit dropped in May as well as on falling oil prices.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished the day up 0.47 percent at 10,577.00, while the Nasdaq composite closed ahead by 0.13 percent to 1,569.00 and the S&P 500 advanced by 0.40 percent to 1,228.30.

Proctor and Gamble was up 1.3 percent to $54.65 and Gilette also gained1.3 percent to $52.36 on the announcement that the two companies had agreed on P&G’s acquisition of Gilette. IBM was also up, by 1.8 percent to $81.51, as Sanford Bernstein raised IBM’s performance rating.

Harley Davidson’s better-than-expected quarterly results sent their shares up 1.7 percent to $50.54. Abbott Laboratories, however, lost 3.6 percent to $47.93 after it said that third-quarter profits will be lower than expected.

As the quarterly earnings season gets into full swing, one of the most awaited results are those from Yum! Brands, which counts among its holdings KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell, which had been expected to report late Tuesday afternoon.