After moving mostly higher over the three previous sessions, stocks are seeing further upside in during trading on Thursday. With the continued advance, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 have once again reached their best intraday levels in over a year.
Currently, the major averages are all in positive territory, although the Dow is posting a relatively modest gain, up 49.06 points or 0.1 percent at 34,396.49. The Nasdaq is up 135.90 points or 1.0 percent at 14,054.86 and the S&P 500 is up 22.93 points or 0.5 percent at 4,495.09.
The continued strength on Wall Street comes following the release of 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 has further eased concerns about the outlook for interest rates.
“The disinflation narrative is in full effect with less-than-expected PPI numbers today following on the heels of lower-than-expected CPI numbers yesterday,” said Chris Zaccarelli, Chief Investment Officer for Independent Advisor Alliance.
He added, “It does appear that inflation is coming down across the board and although the Fed is still likely to raise rates again at the end of this month, there is a very strong possibility that they are done raising rates for the year.”
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.
Sector News
Computer hardware stocks are seeing considerable strength on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index up by 1.5 percent to its best intraday level in well over a year.
Significant strength is also visible among software stocks, as reflected by the 1.4 percent gain being posted by the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index.
Steel, financial and semiconductor stocks are also seeing notable strength, while networking stocks have come under pressure, dragging the NYSE Arca Networking Index down by 1.7 percent.
Other Markets
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 U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index has risen by 0.4 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index are up by 0.8 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively.
In the bond market, treasuries are extending the rally seen over the past few sessions. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 3.9 basis points at 3.822 percent.
Business News
Additional Encouraging Inflation Data Contributing To Extended Uptrend On Wall Street
2023-07-13 14:59:26
