4:22pm: A winning day
The S&P 500 closed at a new record high of 5,745 points, having gained 0.4% during Thursday’s broader market rally.
The Nasdaq added 0.6% at 18,190 points while the Dow Jones was up 0.6% at 42,175 points.
While tech stocks booked gains, led by Micron which added 14.7% on a positive quarterly report, Super Micro Computer Inc (NASDAQ:SMCI) slumped 12.2% on reports its accounting practices are being investigated by the Department of Justice.
Attention afterhours will turn to Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST, ETR:CTO) and Blackberry (TSX:BB)'s latest earnings reports.
3:15pm: Earnings and labor data loom over S&P 500's rally
The S&P 500's new record highlights an economic and market landscape that, despite challenges, continues to support risk assets, says Quasar Elizundia, Expert Research Strategist at Pepperstone.
"Support from positive economic data and external stimuli, such as those from China, has been key to this rise," Elizundia wrote.
"However, upcoming labor data and the earnings season will be crucial in determining the sustainability of this trend.
"While expectations for earnings growth have moderated, markets seem confident that the resilience of the US economy will allow stocks to continue advancing."
2:30pm: Southwest soars on improved guidance
Southwest Airlines Co (NYSE:LUV) shares gained more than 10% after the airline raised its third quarter forecast for revenue per available seat mile and announced a $2.5 billion share repurchase program.
The airline now expects revenue per available seat mile, which reflects pricing power, to increase between 2% to 3% in Q3, compared with its earlier expectation of flat to 2% growth.
Ahead of its Investor Day event in Dallas, the airline also outlined its three-year strategic plan, which features the introduction of assigned seating by mid-2026 and premium seating options to offer extra legroom.
It also said it will formalize global airline partnerships starting with Icelandair in 2025 and will introduce redeye flights and optimize flight times to improve productivity.
1:05pm: Stocks jump
US stocks remained in positive territory in the early afternoon, buoyed by promising economic data and China’s stimulus package.
The Dow Jones had added 0.6% at 42,162 points, the Nasdaq was up 0.3% at 18,135 points, and the S&P 500 was up 0.2% at 5,734 points - on track to notch a new record close.
“It has been a week that has seen huge gains for Chinese markets, while indices in Europe and the US have reacted enthusiastically, if not with quite the same big gains in prices,” IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp commented.
“The risk of a US recession has diminished and now Chinese economic weakness is being counteracted by some impressive action on the part of authorities there. Stock market bears are running out of reasons to support their negative theses.”
Beauchamp questioned if October would bring a slump in stocks as the US presidential election nears.
“On a macro basis, the outlook might look solid, but there is still the problem of October to navigate,” he said. “This being an election year, investors would be wise to be at least mentally prepared for some volatility in the coming month, even if this merely tees up the post-election rally.”
11:10am: Economy 'in good shape'
The economy is performing well, according to market watchers, with real GDP growth showing the longest period of solid growth since 2006.
Recent revisions indicate that both the second quarter's growth remained stable and the first quarter's growth was slightly upgraded, along with positive trends in alternative measures of output, according to Comerica's Bill Adams.
"The Fed will be encouraged to see the economy growing solidly, but it seems clear that labor supply is rising faster than labor demand," Adams noted.
"After a big rate cut in September and considerable further cuts expected by early 2025, interest rate sensitive sectors like housing, manufacturing, auto sales, and retailing of other big-ticket consumer goods should pick up over the next year.
"Lower rates will fuel a recovery of job growth and likely stabilize the unemployment rate around its current level in 2025."
9.51am: S&P 500 hits record in bright start on Wall Street
Wall Street enjoyed a solid start to the day’s trading on Thursday following better-than-expected jobless claims data and further vows from China to boost its flagging economy.
The Nasdaq climbed 1.2% as the market opened, while the Dow Jones and S&P 500 ticked up by 0.6% and 0.7% respectively.
This took the S&P 500 to a record intraday high of 5,758.81 points, after the index has repeatedly racked up record closing values recently.
Better than expected guidance in Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU)’s results saw shares in technology firms jump early on, with the semiconductor firm climbing 16% and dragging up the likes of Nvidia Corp, Arm Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:ARM) and Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META, ETR:FB2A, SWX:FB).
Stronger-than-expected jobless claims figures also provided further positive news on for the economy on Thursday morning, as Labour Department data showed the number of people claiming unemployment benefits in the US fell to a four-month low last week.
Applications for jobless claims fell by 4,000 to 218,000 over the week to 21 September, the department said, below analysts' expectations for 224,000.
This added to a further boost in sentiment overnight, after Chinese leaders pledged “necessary fiscal spending” to meet an economic growth target of 5% this year.
8.52am: US economy confirmed to have grown by 3% in second quarter
The US economy was confirmed on Thursday to have grown by 3% over the second quarter of this year.
Unchanged final estimate figures from the US Bureau of Economic Analysis firmed up the reading on Thursday, which saw gross domestic product tick up by 0.75% on a quarterly basis.
This meant the American economy outpaced both the UK and Eurozone between April and June, which grew by 0.6% and 0.2% respectively.
7.44am: Wall Street set for bright start
Wall Street was set for a bright start on Thursday, with the Nasdaq expected to jump at the open following well-received earnings from Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU).
Futures had the Nasdaq adding 1.5% ahead of the bell, while the Dow Jones and S&P 500 were seen 0.4% and 0.8% higher respectively.
This came as expectation-beating earnings from Micron Technologies offered a boost to stocks in the artificial intelligence space.
Shares in the chipmaker jumped 16.9% in pre-market trading after it forecast first quarter revenue ahead of expectations, leading the likes of Nvidia Corp, Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, ETR:AMD) and Broadcom Inc (NASDAQ:AVGO, ETR:1YD).
Thursday was also set to bring a string of macroeconomic data, with jobless claims and durable good figures due alongside a final second-quarter gross domestic product estimate.