4:20pm: Cisco, Walmart fall
The Dow closed Thursday down 46 points, 0.1%, at 34,945, the Nasdaq Composite climbed 10 points, less than 0.1%, to 14,114 and the S&P 500 added 5 points, 0.1%, to 4,508. The small-cap Russell 2000 index lost 28 points, 1.6%, to 1,773.
The industrial average snapped a four-session winning streak as the market took a break from its strong start to November.
Among the day's laggards were Cisco and Walmart, shares of which fell 10% and 8%, respectively, on disappointing quarterly earnings results.
Meanwhile, investors continued to digest CPI and PPI data this week, which signaled cooling inflation and inspired hope that the Fed's tightening cycle may be over.
“Economic data so far is confirming that for now we’re in this gentle deceleration, back towards less inflation without evidence of a severe contraction,” said Tom Hainlin, senior investment strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management. “It’s like this Goldilocks scenario of inflation decelerating, but not too rapidly.”
12:00pm: US markets pause for breath after recent gains
US stocks waned, consolidating recent gains, as investors took a step back after the inflation inspired gains.
At midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 144.27 points, 0.4%, at 34,846.94, the S&P 500 was down 10.56 points, 0.2%, at 4,492.32 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 42.16 points, 0;3% at 14,061.68.
Craig Erlam at Oanda said: "We're seeing a more muted session in financial markets on Thursday following a couple of days in which investors have been very encouraged by the economic data."
"Inflation figures from the US and UK have been very promising, so much so that markets see almost no chance of another rate hike in this cycle from either the Fed or BoE and a high likelihood of a rate cut by the end of the second quarter of next year."
"I expect many policymakers will continue to push back against markets for now until they can be absolutely certain that inflation has been controlled and is on a path back to 2%."
"A late pivot has likely always been the strategy and I expect it remains the case. Higher for longer remains the mantra but I suspect it won't be too much longer now," he added.
9:40am: Stocks edge lower with mixed fortunes for Macy's and Walmart
US stocks opened lower, pausing for breath after recent strong gains so far this month.
Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 59.05 points, 0.2%, at 34,932.16, the S&P 500 was flat at 4,500.74 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 33.50 points, 0.2%, at 14,070.34.
The number of new claims for unemployment benefits in the week ended November 11 rose to 231,000, up from 218,000 and higher than economists’ forecasts of 220,000.
James Knightly at ING Economics said the figures were more evidence of a “cooling, but not collapsing jobs market.”
While US initial jobless claims remain low, continuing claims are climbing, he noted.
“So while there aren’t many people being fired, if you do lose your job it is becoming harder to find a new one,” he added.
Ian Shepherdson at Pantheon Macroeconomics said the jump in claims, to their highest level in 12 weeks, continues the rebound after the steep drop in late summer.
“We think it quite likely that claims rise to new highs over the next few months, putting downward pressure on payroll gains and pushing up the unemployment rate,” he said.
An easing labour market will strengthen investors’ hopes that the Federal Reserve has finished its campaign of raising interest rates.
In company news, Macy’s shares leapt 7.7% after the department store beat expectations and adjusted its full-year profit outlook, but WalMart slipped 7.6% after it too raised guidance but by less than hoped.
Alibaba slumped 9.9% after it pulled plans to spin off its cloud business and paused plans to list its supermarket unit in a blow to its restructuring plans.
7:00am: Muted start expected with Cisco heading south
US stocks are expected to make a subdued start consolidating recent gains which were sparked by favourable inflation readings.
In pre-market trading, futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were flat, while those for the S&P 500 were also little changed, and contracts for the Nasdaq 100 futures were down 0.2%.
Joshua Mahoney at Scope Markets said: “Market optimism appears to be cooling off after a bumper period of gains for equity markets, built on growing expectations that the Fed are finished with their historic tightening process.”
“With markets now pricing a mere 1% chance of another hike, markets are now more concerned with the timing of the first rate cut and the pace of easing. “
“As things stand, markets are expecting 100 basis points worth of rate cuts next year, with precious metals and cryptocurrencies the early movers on the premise of a more advantageous macro environment.”
In economics news, new applications for unemployment aid are forecast to have increased to 220,000 in the week ended November 11, compared with 217,000 claims a week prior. An industrial production reading is also expected.
Stocks on the move include Cisco, down 11% in pre-market trading, after guidance disappointed investors, while Palo Alto is down 4.8% after missing Wall Street estimates for billings in its financial first quarter and lowering estimates for the full year.
Elsewhere, results from Walmart will also attract attention, following results from Home Depot and Target.