Kelly Cloonan
Indexes ended higher Thursday as investors took in new inflation and jobless claims data.
- The producer price index rose 0.2% on a monthly basis, in-line with expectations.
- The S&P 500 closed with its fourth-straight day of gains.
Indexes ended higher on Thursday after the latest updates on inflation and the labor market.
The S&P 500 hit a four-day winning streak, rising by just under 1%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose over 230 points. The Nasdaq Composite gained 1%.
The producer price index, which measures the prices that producers receive for their goods and services, rose 0.2% in August from July, coming in line with forecasts.
That rise, reported Thursday, comes a day after the consumer price index showed an unexpected uptick in monthly core inflation for August.
The 0.3% increase in consumer prices last month dimmed expectations for a big initial rate cut from the Federal Reserve next week, and led to a brief stock market sell-off before indexes recovered to end slightly on Wednesday.
Analysts say inflation has taken a back seat to conditions in the labor market, which shows some signs of cooling.
"Inflation has improved enough to allow the Fed to start its cutting cycle," analysts from Bank of America said in a Thursday note. "How fast and how far they go will depend more on activity and the labor market."
Meanwhile, weekly jobless claims were in-line with expectations, rising slightly to 230,000 from a revised 228,000 the previous week, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.
Here's where US indexes stood at the 4 p.m. closing bell on Thursday:
- S&P 500: 5,595.76, up 0.75%
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: 41,096.77, up 0.58% (+235.06 points)
- Nasdaq composite: 17,569.68, up 1%
Here's what else happened today:
- Russia stands to lose $6.5 billion a year if Ukraine doesn't renew a gas pipeline deal at the end of the year.
- Bitcoin will surge 117% by year-end if 'crypto president' Trump wins the election, according to Standard Chartered.
- This year's "offseason'"could be much busier for the housing market as buyer competition heats up, Zillow says.
In commodities, bonds, and crypto:
- Oil futures were lower. WTI crude jumped 2.9% to $69.25 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, climbed 2.3% to $72.25 a barrel.
- Gold was up 1.7% to $2,585 per ounce.
- The 10-year Treasury yield rose three basis points to 3.685%.
- Bitcoin was up 1.2% to $58,335.
