Benzinga - by Piero Cingari, Benzinga Staff Writer.
The U.S. stock market is poised for its sixth consecutive day of gains, with investor confidence remaining high due to better-than-expected economic growth and expectations for an inflation slowdown.
In the last quarter of 2023, the U.S. economy grew at a 3.3% annualized pace, significantly above the 2% growth economists expected. Other economic data released Thursday revealed a more mixed picture, with durable goods orders stagnating in December and unemployment claims ticking up more than expected last week.
Market-implied expectations on Fed interest rates remain broadly unchanged, with investors assigning a 56% chance of no change in March, followed by six straight cuts by December.
The dollar gained 0.4%, driven by weaknesses in the euro as the European Central Bank flagged recessionary risks.
Treasury yields were mostly lower by about 4 basis points, bringing gains in the fixed-income space. The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (NASDAQ:TLT) was 0.6% higher.
Oil prices rose 2% on lower-than-expected inventory data and further tensions in the Middle East, with the WTI rising to nearly $77 per barrel, the highest in two months.
Bitcoin remained stuck at the $40,000 level, while gold saw some marginal gains.
Thursday's Performance In U.S. Major Indices, ETFs
| Russell 2000 | 1,967.84 | 0.2% |
| S&P 500 | 4,879.59 | 0.2% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 17,516.46 | 0.1% |
| Dow Jones | 37,829.03 | 0.1% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) rose 0.2% to $486.43, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE:DIA) edged 0.1% higher to $378.41 and the tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) inched 0.1% higher to $426.27, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Sector-wise, the Real Estate Select Sector Fund (NYSE:XLRE) outperformed, up 1.2%. The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector Fund (NYSE:XLY) underperformed, down 1.6%, impacted by Tesla.
Among industries, airlines dominated, with the U.S. Global JETS ETF (NYSE:JETS) up 2.7%.
Thursday’s Stock Movers
- Tesla Inc. tumbled more than 12% after both revenue and earnings missed analyst estimates last quarter. The EV giant is on track for the worst-performing day since September.
- EV-peers Lucid Group Inc. (NASDAQ:LCID) and Rivian Automotive Inc. (NASDAQ:RIVN) fell 7% and 2%, respectively.
- Airline stocks are reacting to quarterly earnings, with American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ:AAL) up 10%, Alaska Air Group Inc. (NYSE:ALK) up 5% and Southwest Airlines Company (NYSE:LUV) down 0.6%.
- Other companies reacting to earnings include United Rentals Inc. (NYSE:URI) (up 13%), International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE:IBM) (up over 10%), Las Vegas Sand Corp. (NYSE:LVS) (up 0.7%), Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) (up over 3%), Humana, Inc. (NYSE:HUM) (down over 11%) and Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP) (down 0.2%), Nokia Oyj (NYSE:NOK) (up 12%), Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) (down 0.9%), Xerox Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ:XRX) (up 12%), Dow, Inc. (NYSE:DOW) (up 2%), Northrop Grumman Corp. (NYSE:NOC) (down 5%), Mobileye Global Inc. (NASDAQ:MBLY) (up 1%) and Columbia Banking Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) (down 22%).
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