4:10pm: A winning week
Stocks exhibited volatility on Friday, eventually closing with mixed results as investors processed a crucial inflation report ahead of the upcoming Federal Reserve meeting on interest rates.
The S&P 500, after reaching a new high on Thursday, ended just below the flatline at 4,891 points, but secured a weekly gain. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose approximately 0.2% to close at 38,109, and the Nasdaq Composite experienced a slight decline of nearly 0.4% at 15,455, primarily due to Intel's disappointing first-quarter outlook impacting the tech sector.
12:05pm: Dow Jones leads gains
US stocks remained in positive territory at noon spurred by upbeat inflation data.
The Dow Jones led the gains adding 0.3% at 38,172 points followed by the S&P 500 which was up 0.2% at 4,902 points.
The Nasdaq traded up less than 0.1% at 15,523 points as investors pulled back on Intel Corp (NASDAQ:INTC, ETR:INL) stock.
"The Nasdaq 100's stellar run of late has been dampened by disappointing Intel earnings with the company's share price slipping by around 11%,” IG senior market analyst Axel Rudolph commented.
XTB research director Kathleen Brooks noted that the greatest advancers this week, including the Dow Jones, were indices that did not have significant tech holdings.
“This signals that investors favoured stocks beyond tech last week, could this be the start of a broader rally for US and European stocks?” she questioned.
9:40am: Blue-chips rise as inflation gauge eases
Stocks in New York made mixed progress, with a fall in Intel weighing on the Nasdaq, after the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge eased in December boosting hopes of a cut in interest rates.
Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.2% at 38,124.97, the S&P 500 was up marginally at 4,895.48 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.2% at 15,476.19.
According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the core personal consumption expenditure grew 2.9% on-year in December, easing from November's 3.2% rise.
The core PCE reading, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, fell to its lowest level since March 2021, and fell short of FXStreet cited consensus of 3.0%.
The core data excludes food and energy.
The annual headline PCE index grew 2.6%, in line with the rate of expansion in November, again in line with consensus.
Andrew Hunter at Capital Economics said: "The December income and spending data confirm that core PCE inflation has been running at an annualised pace in line with the Fed’s 2% target for seven months now."
"This reiterates the message that there isn’t really any “last mile” of disinflation still to achieve and that, even with real economic growth still resilient, there is plenty of scope for the Fed to start cutting interest rates soon."
7:00am: Stocks seen lower ahead of inflation data
Stocks in New York are expected to open lower on Friday as investors await the personal consumption expenditure report which includes the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge.
In pre-market trading, futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.1%, while those for the S&P 500 were down 0.1% and contracts for the Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.5%.
On Thursday, US economic growth was markedly stronger than expected at the end of last year, numbers showed, suggesting the world's largest economy is still in fine fettle despite interest rates entering restrictive territory.
But while the economy grew at a faster pace than expected, inflation pressure ebbed, boosting hopes for an economic soft landing.
In the fourth-quarter, the personal consumption expenditures index rose 2.8% on-year, easing from a 3.1% rise in the third-quarter.
Monthly PCE data for December, including the Federal Reserve's preferred core measure, are released at 1330 GMT on Friday.
The next Fed decision is on Wednesday next week.
Stocks to watch include Intel, down 10% in pre-market trading after first quarter guidance disappointed the Street.