Stocks may move higher in early trading on Thursday, extending the upward trend seen over the past several sessions. The major index futures are currently pointing to initial strength, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.3 percent.
Additional buying interest may be generated in reaction to a Labor Department report showing producer prices in the U.S. inched up by slightly less than expected in the month of June.
The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand crept up by 0.1 percent in June after falling by a revised 0.4 percent in May.
Economists had expected producer prices to rise by 0.2 percent compared to the 0.3 percent dip originally reported for the previous month.
The report also said the annual rate of producer price growth slowed to just 0.1 percent in June from a revised 0.9 percent in May.
The pace of growth was expected to slow to 0.4 percent from the 1.1 percent originally reported for the previous month.
Following yesterday’s tamer-than-expected consumer price inflation data, the data may further ease concerns about the outlook for interest rates.
Meanwhile, a separate Labor Department report unexpectedly showed a modest decrease in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended July 8th.
The Labor Department said initial jobless claims slipped to 237,000, a decrease of 12,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 249,000.
The dip surprised economists, who had expected jobless claims to inch up to 250,000 from the 248,000 originally reported for the previous week.
Stocks moved mostly higher during trading on Wednesday, extending the upward move seen to start the week. With the continued advance, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 ended the session at their best closing levels in over a year.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq jumped 158.26 points or 1.2 percent to 13,918.96 and the S&P 500 climbed 32.90 points or 0.7 percent to 4,472.16. The narrower Dow pulled back well off its best levels of the day but still closed up 86.01 points or 0.3 percent at 34,347.43.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Thursday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index surged by 1.5 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index spiked by 2.6 percent.
The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index has advanced by 0.9 percent, the German DAX Index is up by 0.7 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.4 percent.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are slipping $0.16 to $75.59 a barrel after advancing $0.92 to $75.75 a barrel on Wednesday. Meanwhile, after surging $24.60 to $1,961.70 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are edging down $1.50 to $1,960.20 an ounce.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 138.74 yen versus the 138.50 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Wednesday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1171 compared to yesterday’s $1.1129.
Business News
U.S. Stocks May See Further Upside In Early Trading
2023-07-13 12:53:55
